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LIBRARY 

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LECTURES 


AND 


SERMONS 


BY  THB 

Very   Rev.    THOMAS    N.    BURKE,    O.  P. 


•..*>-*,^^ 


P.  M  HAVERTY,  NEW  YORK. 

P.  J.  KENEDY, 

EXCELSIOR   CATHOLIC   PUBLISHING   HOUSE, 

6  Barclay  Street,  N.  Y. 


5p5'?'?S9S 


•LOAN  STACK 


67 


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PREFACE. 

[On  account  of  the  non-receipt  of  Father  Burke's  preface  to 
this  volume,  and  not  wishing  to  delay  any  longer  the  publica- 
tion of  the  book,  the  publisher  considers  that  no  better  substi- 
tute can  be  offered  as  an  introduction  to  this  edition  than  the 
words  of  greeting  addressed  by  the  great  "  Archbishop  of  the 
West "  to  Father  Burke  on  his  return  to  Ireland  from  his  mis- 
sion to  America.] 

Speech  of  Most  Rev.  John  MacHale,  Archbishop  of  Tuam,  at 
a  dinner  given  to  Very  Rev.  T.  N.  Burke,  O.  P.,  in  St.  Jarlath's 
College,  Tuam,  on  St.  Patrick's  Day,  1873. 

*  *  *  We  would  be  unworthy  of  the  high  compliment  paid  us 
if  we  did  not  appreciate  the  prompt  kindness  with  which  Father 
Burke  responded  to  our  invitation  when  he  had  just  landed  on 
our  shores  from  the  great  republic  of  America.  Among  the 
wonderful  feats  he  has  achieved — and  they  are  many — he  has 
refuted  the  old  proverb,  that  no  man  is  a  prophet  in  his  own 
country ;  but,  whether  it  is  in  or  out  of  his  own  country,  he  is 
one  of  the  most  extraordinary  men  of  this  our  nineteenth  cen- 
tury. No  doubt  he  was  so  before  his  mission  to  America ;  but 
there  was  not  at  home  sufficient  room  for  the  display  of  his 
magnificence.  We  were  all  too  near  him  to  gauge  his  true  pro- 
portions, as  it  is  only  by  seeing  a  mountain  at  a  proper  distance 
you  can  have  a  good  idea  of  its  elevation.  But  whether  near 
or  far  away,  Father  Tom  has  always  a  smack  of  the  genuine 
spirit,  and  it  is  no  wonder  that  on  his  landing,  after  the  long 
voyage  of  the  Atlantic,  he  should  exhibit  all  the  rich  and  mellow 
flavor  acquired  by  excellent  wine  which  has  gone  through  the 
improving  process  of  exportation.  Yet  no  image  or  illustration 
from  natural  history,  or  the  varied  profusion  of  its  wealth,  will 

784 


4  Preface. 

sufficiently  account  for  the  transcendent  excellence  ol  our 
guest.  I  am  not  afraid  to  speak  the  truth,  even  in  his  own 
presence.  Nor  is  there  any  danger,  in  praising  him  while  yet 
living,  to  expose  either  the  giver  or  the  recipient  of  the  tribute 
to  the  reproach  of  vanity  or  adulation.  He  certainly  is  formed 
of  rougher  mould  than  to  be  lightly  shaken  by  the  deceitful 
breath  of  flattery  that  is  particularly  pleasing  to  those  who 
dwell  in  the  palaces  of  kings.  And,  as  for  me,  it  is  now  too 
late  to  learn  the  art  for  which  I  never  yet  sought  or  received 
credit,  of  speaking  pleasing  things  in  behalf  of  any  save  those 
who  were  entitled  to  praise  for  their  services  to  religion  and  our 
people.  I  will  not  then  adjourn  the  eulogy  due  to  our  guest  to 
any  posthumous  panegyrists,  but  follow  the  advice  of  the  wise 
man  in  praising  men  of  renown,  who  wrought  great  glory  in 
their  generation.  And  is  he  not  one  of  those  men  of  great 
power  alluded  to  by  the  inspired  writer,  "  ruling  over  the  pres- 
ent people,  and  by  the  strength  of  wisdom  instructing  them  in 
most  holy  words  ?  "  What  was  the  object  of  his  mission  to 
America — or  rather,  as  motives  are  not  always  so  patent,  let 
me  ask,  What  were  its  fruits?  Were  they  like  those  that 
marked  the  career  of  Give  and  Hastings,  and  other  congenial 
Saxons  in  India,  making  a  wilderness  of  those  vast  regions,  ex- 
cept when  the  solitude  was  broken  by  the  shrieks  of  the  widows 
and  the  orphans  v/ho  were  multiplied  to  administer  to  the 
cupidity  of  such  tyrants  of  the  human  race  ?  Were  such  the 
fruits  and  the  monuments  of  Father  Thomas  Burke's  career  in 
the  opposite  hemisphere?  He,  too,  made  in  a  short  time  real 
conquests.  It  might  be  said  of  him  as  of  Caesar,  veni,  vidi, 
vici  ;  but  how  dissimilar  were  these  conquests  !  The  extraordi- 
nary gifts  of  his  intellect  and  eloquence  were  rewarded,  I  am 
credibly  informed,  by  no  less  a  sum  of  money  than  a  hundred 
thousand  pounds.  How  was  it  expended  ?  Not  in  bribing  the 
patronage  of  some  wealthy  supporters  to  gain  a  title,  or  avert 
the  public  vengeance,  in  reward  or  in  punishment  of  the  mis- 
deeds by  which  he  had  amassed  those  enormous  sums  of  money. 
No  ;  his  heart  was  in  another  place,  and  there  he  deposited  the 
rich  treasures  of  his  piety  and  eloquence.  The  benevolent  in- 
stitutions of  America  in  every  charitable  variety,  from  the  dec- 
oration of  their  temples  to  the  erection  of  their  schools,  in 
which  the  children  are  tended  under  the  protecting  wings  of 


Preface,  5 

the  Catholic  Church,  can  tell  and  will  bear  witness  to  distant 
times  of  the  munificent  contributions  of  the  great  Dominican 
preacher  to  the  noble  people  of  America.  Yes,  they,  the 
preacher  and  the  flock,  were  worthy  of  each  other.  God  raises 
up  in  His  own  time  the  fit  instruments  which  peculiar  circum- 
stances require.  Not  only  has  the  spirit  of  error  shifted  its 
ancient  forms,  but  all  the  followers  of  those  diverse  forms  are 
leagued  together  in  the  most  anomalous  confederation.  To 
conquer  such  an  unprecedented  alliance,  the  most  extraordinary 
powers  are  required,  undiminished  by  one  particle  of  force  in  a 
neutral  position,  much  less  in  an  opposite  and  contrary  direc- 
tion. A  body  impelled  by  another  will  move  under  its  entire 
direction.  If  acted  on  by  two  not  in  a  straight  line,  but  ob- 
liquely, it  will  share  in  the  influence  of  each  and  move  in  a 
diagonal  direction.  And  thus  it  is  with  men  of  talents,  if  those 
talents  are  not  entirely  under  one  single  impulse.  Even  phi- 
losophy will  teach  you  the  superiority  of  the  true  believer,  the 
spiritual  man,  like  St.  Dominic  or  St.  Francis,  or  their  true  fol- 
lowers, over  men  of  the  world,  however  talented.  The  talents 
of  men  in  the  world  are  weakened,  and  often  neutralized,  by 
inclinations  not  always  in  harmony  with  each  other.  To  what, 
then,  do  we  owe  the  mighty  influence  of  the  Dominicans,  for 
example,  or  the  Franciscans,  or  the  Jesuits?  To  the  training 
that  tramples  on  every  feeling  and  every  animal  influence  op- 
posed to  the  spiritual  reign  of  our  Redeemer.  Man,  thus  dis- 
incumbered  of  the  inert  impediments  of  mortality,  becomes  as 
spiritualized  as  is  compatible  with  mortal  life,  and  capable  of 
achievements  which  mere  worldlings  cannot  understand.  This 
was  the  secret  of  the  successes  of  St.  Francis;  this  the  solution 
of  the  mighty  conquests  of  St.  Xavier;  and  this,  too,  explains 
the  prodigious  results  of  Father  Burke's  magnificent  mission  in 
America. 


CONTENTS. 


FASB 

Catholic' iy  as  Revealed  in  the  Character  of  the  Irish  People,          •                *  9 

The  Catholic  Church  and  the  Three  Great  Evils  of  Society,        ...  40 
Temperance,    --.-.-.--..                 .65 

St.  Columbkille, 8l 

Civil  and  Religious  Liberty,   --.-------  loo 

Our  Catholic  Young  Men,  as  Children  of  the  Church  and  Citizens  of  the  Re- 
public,     --.---..--..  113 

Pontificate  of  Pius  IX., ...  133 

The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Remedy,      .-....-  160 

Ireland's  Faith,  the  Triumph  of  the  Age,        .--.--        .  184 

The  Liberator,    ---.----.---  201 

The  Volunteers  of  '82,    --..---..-.  222 

Roderick  O'Connor,  the  Last  Monarch  of  Ireland,     .        .        .        •        .  243 

Catholicity  not  the  Danger,  but  the  Safety  of  the  Great  American  Republic,  -  257 

The  Catholic  Church  in  America,        _.-...--  276 

Mary,  the  Morning  Star,        ..........  287 

The  Future  of  the  Irish  Race  at  Home  and  Abroad,          ....  304 

What  the  Popes  did  for  Rome,       -        -        -        -        -        -        •        •        -321 

The  Catholic  Church  the  Image  of  God,    -..--.-  347 

The  Harmony  of  the  Worship  of  the  Catholic  Church,   -----  366 

The  Position  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope,   --.....  392 

St.  Laurence  O'Toole,  the  Last  Canonized  Saint  of  Ireland,    -        -        -        -  415 

The  Importance  of  Prayer,  -.-.......  438 

No  Salvation  outside  the  Catholic  Church,      .■-.-•-  446 

The  Constitution  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church,  -..---  466 

The  Catholic  View  of  Education,     .........  488 


8  Contents, 

PASB 

Drunkenness  the  worst  Degradation — Temperance  the  greatest  Blessing  of 

Man, 506 

The  Genius  and  Character  of  the  Irish  People,    --.--.  525 

Divine  Faith  the  Principle  of  Christian  Life,          ......  543 

The  Catholic  Church  and  the  Atonement,             .--...  557 

The  Promises  of  Christ  Fulfilled  only  in  the  Catholic  Church,        ...  566 

The  Hidden  Saints  of  Ireland,   --.--..-.  587 

On  the  Consecration  of  a  Bishop,  ■•.......  606 


im4 


Lectures   and    Sermons 


OF     THE 


VERY  REV.  THOMAS  N.  BURKE,  O.P. 


CATHOLICITY   AS   REVEALED   IN 

THE  CHARACTER  OF  THE 

IRISH   PEOPLE. 


[Delivered  in  St.  Gabriel's  Church,  New  York,  on  June  4th,  1872.] 

Y  FRIENDS  :  Every  nation  and  every  race  on  the  face 
of  the  earth  has  its  own  peculiar  characteristics,  its  sym- 
pathies and  antipathies,  its  notions  of  things,  its  Hne  of 
y  conduct,  and  so  on  ;  and  all  these  go  to  make  up  w^hat 
is  called  the  national  character  of  a  people.  They  bear  the  im- 
press of  the  race.  We  may  find  amongst  a  people  a  great 
many  individual  exceptions  to  the  national  character.  A  peo- 
ple, as  a  race,  may  be  brave,  and  yet  we  may  find  a  coward 
amongst  them  ;  a  people,  as  a  race,  may  be  noted  for  their 
chastity,  and  yet  we  may  find  an  impure  man  amongst  them ; 
a  people,  on  the  whole,  as  a  race  or  as  a  nation,  may  be  remark- 
able for  their  honesty,  and  yet  we  may  find  a  thief  or  a  dis- 
honest man  amongst  them  ;  they  may  be  remarkable  for  their 
fidelity,  yet  we  may  find  a  faithless  man  amongst  them  ;  but  in 
this,  as  in  everything  else,  the  exception  only  strengthens  the 
rule,  and  the  man  who  is  unlike  his  race  stands  out  in  such 
relief  amongst  them,  and  makes  himself  so  remarkable  by  being 
so  unlike  his  fellow-countrymen,  that,  actually,  his  deficiency 
only  brings  out  the  virtues  or  the  peculiarities  of  the  race  to 
which  he  belongs  more  strongly.     Now,  amongst  the  subjects 


I  o  Catholicity  as  Revealed  in  the 

that  may  command  the  interest  of  the  thinking  man  or  the 
philosopher,  there  is  not  one  more  interesting  than  the  study 
of  national  character.  How  marked  the  character  of  a  people  ; 
how  clearly  defined  the  national  phenomena,  the  idiosyncrasies 
of  a  race  or  a  nation  are !  How  different  do  we  find  one  people 
from  another  !  For  instance,  take  an  average  Frenchman  and 
an  average  German.  They  are  as  unlike  each  other  as  if  they 
were  not  of  the  same  human  species.  The  Frenchman  is  quick, 
impulsive,  chivalrous ;  ready  to  stand  up  and  fight  for  an  idea ; 
lofty  in  his  notions  of  things  ;  more  or  less  theoretical ;  easily 
roused  to  anger,  and  as  easily  appeased  by  a  word  of  kindness. 
The  German,  on  the  other  hand,  is  cool,  calm,  deliberative  ;  not 
easily  roused  to  anger,  but,  if  roused,  not  easily  appeased  ;  not  at 
all  taking  up  ideas,  but  looking  for  realities  ;  not  at  all  ready 
to  risk  any  important  thing— not  even  a  dollar  of  his  means, 
much  less  his  blood — for  some  great  idea  that  fills  the  mind  and 
drives  a  hundred  thousand  Frenchmen  out  into  the  field.  Take, 
again,  an  Englishman  and  an  Irishman.  How  different  they  are. 
The  Irishman  is  open-mouthed,  open-minded,  fully  speaking  out 
ivhatever  he  has  in  him.  If  he  has  any  vice  in  him,  out  it  comes 
on  the  surface.  If  he  feels  angry,  he  cannot  hold  his  tongue, 
but  out  comes  the  expression  of  anger.  If  you  offend  the  Eng- 
lishman, on  the  other  hand,  or  insult  him,  he  will,  perhaps,  pass 
it  over  for  the  time,  but  he  will  remember  it.  He  is  reticent  in 
the  expression  of  his  feelings,  undemonstrative  of  his  affections. 
If  ,he  is  disappointed,  he  knows  how  to  keep  it  to  himself  I 
say  this  not  as  if  I  thought  ill  of  this  character  or  that. 
There  is  a  great  deal  that  is  noble,  manly,  and  magnificent  in 
the  English  character.  It  is  the  fashion  amongst  Irishmen  to 
talk  as  though  there  is  nothing  good  in  the  English.  It  would 
be  bad  policy  for  us  to  believe  it  ;  for  if  there  were  nothing 
good,  or  brave,  or  strong  in  them,  why  in  the  world  did  we  let 
them  overcome  us?  It  is  a  bad  thing  for  a  man  to  say  that  his 
enemy  is  a  coward,  because  he  is  making  light  of  himself.  It  is 
an  easy  thing  to  conquer  a  coward.  No,  there  is  much  that  is 
brave,  strong,  and  magnificent  in  the  English  character ;  but 
still  it  is  thoroughly  distinct  from  that  of  the  sister  island  which 
is  only  sixty  miles  xway  (I  wish  to  God  it  were  sixty  thou- 
sand). 

Now,  my  friends,  a  thinking  man,  who  looks  a  little  below 


Character  of  the  Irish  People.  II 

the  surface  of  things,  and  who  tries  to  find  an  explanation  of  a 
people's  character,    must  admit  that  amongst  the  causes  that 
form  that  character,  the  very  first  is  the  religion  of  the  people. 
There  is  no  influence  that  is  set  at  work  to  mould  or  form  a 
nation's  character  so  strong  as  a  nation's  religion,  and  the  proof 
of  this  is  manifest  from  simple  observation.     What  is  a  nation, 
a  people,  or  a  race  ?     It  is  nothing  more  than  an  assemblage  of 
all  the  individual  men  and  women  of  that  race.     Whatever  the 
individual  man  is,  the  same,  as  a  rule,  will  his  nation  be,  because 
the   nation  is  made  up  of  individuals.     Now,  as  there  is   no 
more  strong  or  powerful  influence  at  work  to  form  an  individ- 
ual's character  than  religion,  so  it  follows  that  there  is  nothing 
that  impresses  itself  more  forcibly  on  a  nation,  as  a  people,  than 
their  religion.     I  need  not  tell  you  that  there  is  nothing  that 
forms  a  man's  character  more  than  his  religion.     That  explains 
everything.     A  man's  religion  is  everything  to  him.     If  he  be  a 
religious  man,  conscientious  and  honest  because  of  his  religion, 
and  if  he  be  a  pure  man,  faithful  and  chaste,  how  different  he  is 
from  the  man  who  has  no  religion.     Is  it  not  a  man's  religious 
belief — the  religious  principles  in  which  he  was  brought  up — 
that  have  come  down  to  him  in  his  blood — that  have  been  put 
into  him  by  nature  and  then  by  grace — that  make  up  all  the 
difference  in  the  world  between  the  man  who  has  and  the  man 
who  has  not  them.     A  man  who  is  without  religion  has  no 
principle  to  hold  on  by.     He  consults  only  his  own  advantage  in 
not  being  a  rogue,  for  he  has  nothing  to  restrain  him  from  being, 
one.      A  man   without    religion    quarrels  with  his  wife.       He 
leaves  her,  goes  off  to  some  other  place,  and  marries  another 
woman.     He  only  seeks  his  pleasure,  and  he  has  nothing  to  re- 
strain him  from  following  that  pleasure.     In  a  word,  when  you 
come  to  analyze  a  man's  individual  character,  you  find  that  it  is 
altogether  formed  and  founded  upon  his  religion ;  and  so  it  is 
with  a  nation.     If  you  take  ten  millions  of  men  of  one  race  and 
of  one  blood,  who  have  always  kept  the  same  religion,  held  to 
the  same  principles,  stood  by  the  same  devotion  and  belief,  and 
fought  for  the  same  truths,  then  you  will  have  a  race,  every  in- 
dividual of  which  opens  himself  to  the  influences  of  the  national 
religion  ;  as  that  which  makes  the  man  makes  the  nation.     I  say 
all  this,  because  it  is  necessary  as  a  preface  to  what  I  am  about 
to  say  to  you. 


12  Catholicity  as  Revealed  in  the 

The  theme  on  which  I  am  come  here  to  address  you  to-night 
is :  The  National  Character  of  the  Irish  Race  as  a  Reflection  of 
the  Catholic  Religion.  And  now  I  need  hardly  tell  you  that  I 
am  not  going  to  speak  of  irreligious  Irishmen,  of  Irishmen  who 
give  up  their  faith  and  their  religion ;  because,  my  friends,  as 
far  as  the  reflection  of  the  Irish  character  is  concerned,  they  are 
not  Irishmen  at  all.  Give  me  the  Irishman  that  does  not  believe 
in  God,  and  does  not  believe  in  the  national  religion,  the  Catho- 
licity of  Ireland  ;  give  me  the  Irishman  that  has  no  principle 
of  Catholicity  in  him,  and  I  will  say  that,  as  far  as  the  history 
of  our  race  and  nation  is  concerned,  he  is  not  an  Irishman  at  all. 
As  far  as  regards  the  reflection  of  all  that,  we  know  that  he  is 
not  a  fair  specimen  at  all  of  the  national  character  and  peculiar- 
ities of  the  Irishman.  Take  an  Irishman  without  religion,  and 
he  will  be  as  big  a  rogue  as  any  man  on  the  face  of  the  earth. 
Take  an  Irishman  without  religion,  he  having  practically  denied 
his  creed  and  his  God  (for  he  may  not  have  denied  it  in  words), 
and  let  him  go  out  amongst  a  strange  people,  and  he  will  gather 
up  all  their  vices  unto  himself;  he  will  make  himself  the  very 
•worst  amongst  them,  because  he  is  generally  a  shrewd,  quick- 
witted, keen,  and  sharp  fellow,  who.  has  more  talent  than  the 
people  among  whom  he  lives,  and  the  consequence  is  that  he 
turns  all  his  talent  and  shrewdness  in  the  way  of  wickedness. 
The  cleverer  a  scoundrel  is,  the  greater  scoundrel  he  is.  Give 
me,  therefore,  an  Irishman  without  religion,  and  if  he  goes  into 
a  wild  country,  where  he  finds  it  the  fashion  to  run  away  from 
his  wife,  he  will  run  away  from  his,  and  will  marry  seven  other 
wives  where  another  man  would  but  marry  one.  Give  me  an 
Irishman  without  religion,  and  if  he  goes  in  to  make  money,  he 
will  be  more  close-fisted  than  a  Yankee-Jew  peddler.  He  would 
not  give  a  cent  to  king  or  country.  But  it  is  not  of  such  Irishmen 
that  I  speak.  I  come  here  to-night  to  speak  of  the  national 
character  of  our  own  race.  Now,  what  does  this  race  mean  ? 
It  means  a  people  that  for  fifteen  hundred  years  have  been 
Catholics  to  the  heart's  core.  It  means  a  people  who  have  never 
renounced  nor  changed  their  pure  faith  that  they  received  from 
the  lips  and  from  the  hands  of  their  great  Apostle,  St.  Patrick. 
It  means  a  people  that  have  never  consented  to  see  their  religion 
outraged  nor  their  priesthood  and  worship  violated,  without 
rising  up  and  striking  a  quick  blow  in  defense  of  their  God  and 


Character  of  the  Irish  People.  13 

their  altars.  It  means,  too,  a  people  who  have  their  faults.  Do 
not  imagine,  for  an  instant,  that  I  am  one  of  those  men  who 
believe  that  every  Irishman  is  perfection,  or  that  the  Irish  peo- 
ple are  perfection,  and  that  I  do  not  see  their  faults.  I  see  them 
well,  and  I  know  them  well.  It  would  be  a  strange  thing  if, 
after  twenty  years  of  priesthood  among  my  people,  I  did  not 
know  them.  It  would  be  a  strange  thing  if  I  did  not  know  their 
faults.  For  the  last  twenty  years  they  have  been  telling  me 
their  faults.  People  do  not  go  to  the  confessional  to  tell  their 
virtues,  but  to  relate  their  miseries,  their  woes,  their  faults,  and 
short-comings.  It  would  be  a  strange  thing  if  I  did  not  know 
their  faults — I,  in  whose  veins  runs  nothing  but  pure  Irish  blood, 
and  am  Irish  in  my  body,  my  soul,  my  mind,  and  my  heart. 
After  my  love  for  my  God  and  His  Church,  comes  my  love  for 
my  country  and  my  people.  I  tell  you  we  have  our  faults,  and 
are  not  without  them.  But  I  will  assert  this  :  that  the  very 
faults  of  the  Irish  character  have  been  touched  and  ennobled 
by  our  Catholic  religion.  Now,  I  ask  you  to  consider  that 
Catholic  religion  as  reflected  in  the  history  of  our  Irish  race  in 
times  past,  and  in  our  Irish  people  of  to-day — a  people  that  are 
so  despised  and  calumniated,  that  if  a  man  gets  drunk,  or  does 
any  brutal  act,  the  very  first  cry  is  :  "  Oh,  he  is  an  Irishman  !  " 
but  when  you  come  to  see  the  Irishman,  you  will  find  frequently 
that  nobody  knows  where  he  comes  from.  This  Irish  race  has 
been  so  calumniated  that  the  English  Times  newspaper  could 
not  get  a  better  name  for  us  than  "bog-trotters."  And  why? 
Because  they,  the  villains,  took  the  good  land,  kept  it  for 
themselves,  and  left  only  the  bogs  for  the  Irishman.  Put  a 
gentleman  out  of  his  house,  take  his  good  clothes  off  his  back, 
and  put  beggar's  clothes  upon  him,  throw  him  out  into  the 
street  and  take  possession  of  his  house,  and  you  are  the  robber 
for  doing  all  this.  Then  you  can  turn  round  and  say,  "  Ah, 
you  dirty  beggar ! "  The  Tijnes  newspaper  called  us  "  bog- 
trotters  ; ''  but  the  Times  newspaper  and  the  writers  thereof 
may  yet  live  to  see  the  day  when  the  "  bog-trotters "  may 
have  something  better  than  the  bogs — when  what  their  fathers 
possessed  may  become  the  inheritance  of  their  descendants. 

Now,  my  friends,  I  mean  to  take  up  only  a  few  leading  points 
of  the  Catholic  religion,  and  to  show  you  how  it  has  moulded 
and  formed  the  Irish  character.     First  of  all,  then,  the  Catholic 


14  Catholicity  as  Revealed  in  the 

religion  preaches  mysteries,  and  speaks  of  things  that  no  human 
eye  has  ever  seen.  The  CathoHc  religion  speaks  of  these  things 
as  realities.  The  Catholic  religion  leads  a  man  to  believe  in 
things  that  he  has  never  seen,  and  to  believe  in  those  things 
more  promptly  than  even  the  things  that  his  eyes  behold  or  his 
hands  lay  hold  on.  For  instance,  who  has  ever  seen  Christ  in 
the  Blessed  Eucharist?  No  man  has  ever  beheld  Him,  save 
now  and  then,  as  we  read  in  the  history  of  the  Church,  when  He 
manifested  Himself  miraculously  to  some  saint  or  other,  whilst 
he  was  saying  mass ;  but,  as  a  rule,  and  a  fitting  one,  no  eye  has 
seen  Him.  Yet  every  Catholic  child  is  taught  from  the  first 
day  that  reason  beams  upon  him,  that  his  God,  his  Lord,  his 
Creator,  his  Redeemer,  his  Judge  is  present,  waiting  in  the 
Blessed  Sacrament,  until  that  child  is  old  enough  to  come  to 
his  first  communion,  and  receive  Him.  What  eye  has  ever 
seen  the  holy  Spirit  of  God — the  Holy  Ghost — the  Third  Person 
of  the  Holy  Trinity?  But  every  Catholic  knows  and  believes 
that  that  holy  Spirit  of  God  is  in  his  Church,  that  He  lives  with 
the  Church,  that  He  keeps  that  Church  from  ever  telling  a  lie 
to  the  people,  that  He  keeps  that  Church  in  all  holiness  as 
well  as  in  all  truth,  and  that  when  the  bishop's  hands  are  im- 
posed upon  the  head  of  the  young  child  in  confirmation,  that 
child  receives  the  seven  gifts  of  the  Holy  Ghost :  wisdom, 
understanding,  counsel,  fortitude,  knowledge,  piety,  and  the  fear 
of  the  Lord.  Thus  it  is  that  not  merely  in  the  higher  truths,  in 
the  awful  truths  regarding  the  eternal  unity  and  Trinity  of 
God,  but  even  in  those  practical  truths  that  come  home  to  us 
and  that  bring  the  Lord  our  God  to  our  very  doors,  the  Cath- 
olic Church  teaches  the  unseen,  and  creates  in  man  the  faculty 
of  realizing  that  which  eye  has  never  beheld.  I  must  dwell  upon 
this  a  little.  There  are  two  classes  of  men  in  this  world. 
There  are  those  that  refuse  to  believe  anything  unless  they  see 
it,  or  unless  it  be  brought  home  to  them  by  proof  or  conviction 
of  sense,  or  of  intelligence,  to  their  intellect.  There  are  those 
who  will  not  admit  anything  upon  the  authority  of  the  Church, 
nor  even  of  God  himself  They  say,  "  I  never  saw  it,  and  I 
won't  believe  it."  They  are  materialists.  They  are  gross  in 
their  conceptions.  They  are  materialistic  in  their  ideas.  Such 
an  one  was  the  French  infidel  who  said  to  the  priest,  "  Father, 
I  never  saw  God,  and  I  will  not  believe  in  him  until  I  see  him." 


Character  of  the  Irish  People.  1 5 

The  priest  tamed  around  and  said,  "  Pray,  tell  me,  do  you 
believe  you  have  a  heart  ?  "  "  Oh  yes,  I  do."  "  Did  you  ever 
see  it  ?  Do  you  believe  you  had  a  great-grandmother?  "  "  Cer- 
tainly." "  Did  you  see  her?  "  There  is  another  class,  and  they 
are  Christians,  who  know  and  believe  that  the  things  that  are 
not  seen  are,  actually,  more  real  and  more  substantial  than  the 
things  that  we  see.  When  we  say  the  Nicene  Creed  at  Mass 
we  say,  "  I  believe  in  God  the  Father  Almighty,  the  Creator  of 
all  things  visible  and  invisible,"  the  Creator  of  the  invisible  as 
well  as  of  the  visible  world.  For  there  are  two  worlds,  my 
friends.  There  is  the  world  that  we  see  around  us,  and  the 
world  that  we  do  not  see  ;  and  of  these  two  the  invisible  world 
is  far  more  real  than  the  visible.  The  visible  world  perishes, 
and  all  things  here  pass  away  like  a  shadow.  The  invisible 
world,  that  eye  hath  not  seen  nor  ear  heard,  neither  hath  it 
entered  into  the  heart  of  man  to  conceive,  contains  God,  all  the 
angels  of  God,  all  the  saints  of  God,  and  all  the  future  hopes  of 
every  man  amongst  you.  Therefore,  in  its  substance,  in  its 
eternity,  it  is  far  more  real  than  the  visible.  Now,  the  Catholic 
Church,  because  it  deals  with  mystery,  because  it  comes  with 
the  voice  of  authority  from  God,  because  it  speaks  with  the  very 
commission  of  God  upon  its  lips,  alone  can  ask  a  man  to  believe 
what  he  has  never  seen.  And  in  asking  him  to  do  this,  the  Cath- 
olic Church  alone  creates  in  the  mind  of  man,  and,  consequently, 
in  the  mind  of  the  nation,  the  faculty  of  realizing  the  unseen. 
Behold  this,  in  our  Irish  race,  in  its  religion.  For  eight  hundred 
years  that  Irish  race  has  been  fighting.  I  might  say  they  had 
been  fighting  for  eleven  hundred  years,  but  for  the  last  three 
hundred  years  of  that  struggle,  the  Irish  race  have  been  fighting 
for  a  thing  that  they  never  saw.  They  stood  for  three  hundred 
years  in  the  trenches.  They  filled  those  trenches  with  their 
blood,  for  a  thing  that  they  never  saw.  Three  hundred  years 
ago  the  English  people  were  called  upon  by  their  king  to  give 
up  their  Catholic  religion,  and  somehow  or  other,  by  some 
strange  misfortune,  that  Catholic  religion  had  so  little  formed 
the  national  character  of  the  Saxon  race  that  the  moment  they 
were  called  upon  to  give  it  up  or  to  sacrifice  their  bread  and 
cheese  for  the  things  they  never  saw,  they  gave  up  the  invisible 
and  took  the  things  that  they  could  handle  and  touch.  They 
took  the  Protestant  religion  from  their  adulterous  and  tyrannical 


1 6  Catholicity  as  Revealed  in  the 

king.  They  took  the  thing  that  fortune  gave  them  in  this 
world.  They  were  told  they  would  have  to  give  up  property 
and  means  and  fortune,  and,  perhaps,  life  itself,  if  they  did  not 
embrace  the  Protestant  religion,  which  religion  tells  them  that 
they  need  not  believe  anything  that  they  cannot  see  ;  for  it 
comes  to  this  really,  that  Protestantism,  by  rejecting  the  au- 
thority and  the  voice  of  God  in  the  Catholic  Church,  by  reject- 
ing the  mysteries  of  religion,  embraces  the  idea  and  the  prin- 
ciple that  a  man  need  not  believe  what  he  does  not  see.  The 
proof  of  this  lies  in  the  fact  that  a  Protestant  bishop  of  London, 
Bishop  Pointer,  when  writing  a  book  against  the  Blessed 
Eucharist,  stated  his  principal  argument  against  the  presence 
of  Christ  in  the  Eucharist  to  be  that  nobody  ever  saw  him. 
The  English  people  gave  up  their  mysteries  and  religion,  and 
clutched  the  material  blessings  of  this  world,  wealth,  land,  prop- 
erty, riches.  The  Irish  people  were  called  upon  by  the  same 
king  to  renounce  their  Catholic  religion,  to  give  up  their  faith 
in  the  unseen.  They  were  told  Christ  could  not  be  present  in 
the  Blessed  Eucharist,  because  nobody  ever  saw  him.  I  take 
this  sacrament  as  the  very  touch-stone  of  our  Catholicity.  They 
were  asked,  of  course,  to  give  up  other  sacraments ;  they  were 
asked  to  deny  the  real  presence ;  and  the  whole  nation,  like  one 
man,  the  whole  Irish  race  rose  up  and  said  :  "  We  will  give  up 
property,  we  will  let  you  rob  us,  we  will  let  you  confiscate  all 
we  have  in  this  world,  we  will  let  you  deprive  us  of  liber:y  and 
of  education,  we  will  go  out  and  die,  but  we  will  never  renounce 
our  faith  in  Jesus  Christ  in  the  Blessed  Eucharist."  Now,  this 
is  the  very  quintessence  of  Catholicity,  to  be  able  to  realize  the 
unseen,  to  be  able  to  let  it  into  your  life,  to  be  able  to  make  it 
the  substance  of  your  life.  I  ask  you,  if  I  were  not  a  priest  could 
I  not  go  out  and  become  a  lawyer  and  make  a  fortune  ?  Could 
I  not  go  out  and  marry  a  wife,  and  have  a  grand  house  and  a 
carriage  ?  Why  not  ?  I  am  as  well  able  to  do  it  as  many  who 
have  done  it.  Could  I  not  go  out  and  make  a  big  fortune  and 
a  name  for  myself,  and  surround  myself  with  all  the  comforts 
and  pleasures  of  life?  In  the  winter  season  I  could  have  a 
great  house,  with  carpets,  and  fires,  and  everything  around  me 
grand.  In  the  summer  season  I  could  go  off  and  amuse  my- 
:>elf  somewhere.  Why  do  I  not  do  it  ?  Why  am  I  tiring  myself 
day  after  day,  and  night  after  night,  for  the  last  twenty  years  ? 


Character  of  the  Irish  People.  ij 

Why  do  I  sit  in  the  confessional  day  after  day  (and  in  speak- 
ing of  myself  I  speak  for  all  priests)  ?  Have  we  ever  seen 
what  we  are  working  for  ?  Never.  The  quintessence  of  the 
Catholic  religion  is  to  let  the  invisible  so  enter  into  a  man's  life 
that  he  makes  that  the  substance  of  his  life,  for  which  he 
sacrifices  all  present  pleasures.  It  annihilates  his  passions, 
curbs  every  desire  of  his  nature,  tramples  upon  himself,  and 
makes  him  a  victim  and  a  slave  for  the  sake  of  something 
that  he  has  never  seen  in  his  life.  Understand  this.  It  is 
very  necessary  to  know  that  this  is  the  very  first  and  grand- 
est feature  of  the  Catholic  religion.  See  how  it  is  illustrated 
in  the  Irish  people.  Now,  I  say,  that  side  by  side  with  the 
essential  Catholicity  of  a  race,  there  comes  on  the  one  side 
t^ie  excess,  which  is  vicious,  and  on  the  other  side  there  comes, 
the  concomitant  natural  virtues  that  spring  from  a  peo- 
ple's religion.  Out  of  this  form  of  character,  moulded  by  the 
Catholic  Church,  proceeds,  first,  the  excess,  which  is  bad.  For 
instance,  people  whose  religion  enables  them  to  realize  the  un- 
seen may  run  into  superstition.  We  find  in  Ireland  traditions, 
of  ghosts,  and  fairies,  and  things  that  do  not  exist  at  all.  This, 
is  owing  to  the  peculiarity  of  the  Irish  people,  which,  through 
their  religion,  enables  them  to  realize  the  things  they  never 
saw.  You  can  frighten  a  little  child  in  Ireland  by  telling  him 
a  story  about  a  fairy.  Take  a  young  man  or  woman,  or  a 
grown  one  for  that,  and  tell  them  there  is  a  banshee  in  that 
lane,  and  you  could  not  get  them  to  go  down  there  after  night- 
fall. I  remember  when  I  was  a  boy  I  had  to  pass  under  a  cer- 
tain archway  in  Galway,  an  old  town  full  of  old  houses  and 
nooks  and  corners.  One  of  the  streets  passed  under  these  old 
houses,  which  formed  an  archway.  There  was  a  tradition 
among  the  little  boys  that  an  old  Protestant  man  had  killed 
himself  very  many  years  before,  and  that  he  was  going  about 
the  place.  Well,  that  one  legend  was  the  very  torment  of  my 
young  days,  for,  as  it  happened,  in  going  to  and  from  school, 
running  errands  for  my  mother,  and  one  thing  and  another,  I 
had  to  go  under  that  old  blind  archway  very  often.  I  always 
came  up  to  it  crying  out,  "  Hail  Mary,"  and  calling  upon  all  the 
saints  to  stand  by  me ;  but  with  all  my  faith  in  the  Blessed 
Virgin  and  the  saints,  as  soon  as  I  came  to  the  old  archway  I 
had  to  run  for  bare  life.     But  I  am  willing  to  admit,  and  da 


i8  Catholicity  as  Revealed  in  the 

admit,  that  that  very  superstition  that  exists  in  the  Irish  char- 
acter grows  out  of  the  national  mind  that  is  formed  by  our 
Catholicity,  enabling  us  to  realize  the  unseen.  But  oh  1  my 
friends,  how  beautiful  are  the  forms  which  even  this  excess  of 
credibility  gives.  Can  anything  be  imagined  more  beautiful 
than  some  of  the  forms  of  what  is  called  Irish  superstition — as, 
for  instance,  where  the  mother  is  rocking  her  little  child  in  the 
cradle,  and  where  the  little  one,  as  infants  often  do,  smiles  in 
its  sleep.  There  is  a  mysterious  ray  of  gladness  and  sunshine 
that  it  never  remembers — that  we  never  remember — but  it 
passes  over  the  innocent  young  soul,  and  the  infant  smiles  in 
its  sleep.  Now,  the  Irish  mother,  rocking  her  child,  as  soon  as 
she  sees  the  smile  on  the  little  face,  bends  down,  kisses  the 
child,  and  says  that  it  is  an  angel  that  has  come  to  whisper  to  her 
infant.  How  beautiful  the  idea  is — how  delicate  is  the  thought 
.and  the  sentiment — how  motherly  is  the  act,  and  how  grand  the 
faith  which  that  act  proves.  We  believe,  as  Catholics,  that  the 
.child  baptized  becomes  as  an  angel  of  God ;  that  no  sin  nor  ap- 
proach of  sin  is  there ;  that  until  that  child  comes  to  years  of 
reason,  and  consequently  is  capable  of  committing  a  personal 
sin,  it  is,  in  the  eye  of  God,  even  as  one  of  His  angels.  This, 
we  Catholics  believe,  because  we  believe  in  the  efficacy  of  bap- 
tismal regeneration.  There  is  no  fear  among  Catholics  of  priests 
ever  neglecting  baptism,  as  there  is  among  Protestants.  There 
is  no  fear  of  a  Catholic  priest,  as  I  have  known  Protestant  min- 
isters do,  to  take  no  less  than  ten  or  twelve  children  in  a  dis- 
trict, and  baptize  them  altogether  by  dipping  his  finger  into 
the  water  and  giving  them  a  sprinkle.  There  is  no  fear  of  a 
Catholic  priest  denying  baptismal  regeneration,  and  then  fight- 
ing his  bishop  on  it,  holding  it  as  the  truth.  A  few  years  ago, 
the  Queen  of  England  stood  in  the  midst  of  her  council,  who 
were  debating  the  question  whether  baptism  was  really  a  sac- 
rament or  not,  and  they  decided  it  was  not.  They  acted  up  to 
the  best  of  their  light.  You  could  scarcely  expect  anything 
■else  from  them.  But  we  Catholics,  who  know  that  the  child 
baptized  is  incorporated  and  engrafted  upon  Jesus  Christ,  also 
know  that  that  child  is  as  pure  as  an  angel,  until  the  first  mis- 
fortune of  personal  sin  comes  to  stain  the  soul.  What,  then, 
can  be  more  beautiful  than  the  idea  that  God  sends  his  angel 
from  heaven  to  visit  his  little  angel  upon  earth,  and  that  he 


Character  of  the  Irish  People.  1 9 

whispers  in  the  young  ear  something  of  the  joy  that  he  feels 
himself  before  God  ?  This  is  the  thought  that  passes  over  the 
Irish  mother's  mind  when  she  stoops  and  takes  her  infant  up, 
kisses  and  blesses  it,  as  one  given  her  by  Almighty  God,  pure 
and  holy.  You  may  call  it  superstition,  but  how  beautiful  the 
superstition  is  ! 

But,  again,  out  of  this  faculty  of  realizing  the  unseen,  comes 
another  Irish  virtue,  so  imprinted  and  impressed  upon  our 
national  character  and  upon  the  history  of  our  people,  which  is, 
that  no  distance  that  an  ordinary  Irishman  puts  between  him- 
self and  his  parents  or  his  friends,  makes  him  ever  forget  them. 
They  are  as  present  to  his  mind,  though  there  may  be  thou- 
sands of  miles  of  ocean  between  them,  as  if  he  were  on  the  floor 
with  them,  as  we  say  in  Ireland.  The  aged  father  and  mother 
whom  he  leaves  behind  when  he  emigrates  to  a  distant  land, 
though  growing  old  and  feeble,  are  as  present  to  his  mind  as  if 
he  had  never  left  them,  but  was  in  the  habit  of  coming  home 
every  evening  to  the  old  cabin,  to  give  them  his  earnings. 
His  Catholicity  has  taught  him  to  love  them  and  to  honor  them. 
His  religion  has  taught  him  that  as  long  as  they  live  they  have 
a  claim  upon  him,  and  that  whilst  he  has  a  dollar,  they  have  a 
right  to  fifty  cents  of  it.  And  so  he  goes  away  to  a  distant 
land,  taking  with  him  his  Catholic  religion,  his  glorious  faith — 
that  faith  which  enables  him  to  realize  his  God  upon  the  altar — 
that  faith  which  enables  him  to  realize  his  God  in  Heaven — that 
faith  which  also  enables  him  to  keep  green  in  his  memory  the 
recollection  of  those  he  has  left  behind.  And  does  not  this 
truth  come  forth,  in  the  emigrant  of  to-day  ?  Where  is  the 
race  on  the  face  of  the  earth,  that  are  so  loving  and  kind,  and 
so  mindful  of  the  friends  they  have  left  behind  ?  Where  is  the 
man,  in  this  day  of  ours,  who,  fighting  the  battle  of  life,  and 
having,  perhaps,  a  hard  tussle  to  make  his  daily  bread,  who 
remembers  his  parents  at  home,  and  who  never  sits  down  to  eat 
bread  until  he  has  sent  them  a  portion  of  it  ?  The  Irishman 
goes  forth  from  his  native  land  to  a  distant  country,  where  he 
marries,  and  assumes  the  care  and  responsibility  of  a  family. 
Not  the  love  that  he  has  for  the  wife  of  his  bosom,  not  the 
necessity  created  in  the  father's  mind,  by  the  little  children  that 
are  born  to  him,  not  all  the  vicissitudes  and  circumstances  of 
his  new  life — none  of  these,  even  for  an  instant,  make  him  for- 


20  Catholicity  as  Revealed  iti  the 

get  the  old  couple  at  home,  but  every  year,  or  perhaps  every 
month,  his  letter  goes  with  his  contribution  to  them.  He  is 
far  away,  but  he  honors  the  father  and  the  mother  that  he  has 
left  upon  the  green  sod.  Oh  !  how  often  have  I  spoken  in  Ire- 
land with  the  father  and  the  mother  left  there  in  their  old  age, 
when  the  two  or  three  strong,  stalwart  sons  went  away  from 
them  to  America  or  elsewhere.  Oh  !  how  often  have  I  seen 
the  eye  brighten  up  with  pleasure,  when  they  have  told  me 
that  on  such  a  day  a  letter  would  come  that  would  bring  them 
a  little  money  and  a  little  relief.  They  knew  that  the  letter 
would  come,  and  they  counted  upon  it  with  certainty.  They 
were  enabled  to  lean  with  perfect  confidence  upon  the  heart  of 
him  that  was  far  away,  because  that  heart  was  the  glorious, 
generous,  manly  heart  of  a  Catholic  Irishman. 

The  second  great  feature  of  our  Catholicity  that  has  en- 
grafted itself  upon  our  national  character,  is  this.  And,  first, 
let  me  say  that  there  may  be  here  to-night  some  friends  of  ours 
who  are  not  Catholics.  There  may  be  some  here  to-night  who 
are  American-born  citizens.  I  need  not  tell  you  of  these  things, 
brothers  of  my  blood  and  race,  but  for  them  it  is  necessary  that 
I  should  speak.  Our  Catholic  religion,  my  friends,  puts  forth 
prominently  in  her  belief  the  magnificent  figure  of  the  Blessed 
Virgin,  the  mother  of  Jesus  Christ.  Our  Catholic  religion  teaches 
us  that,  in  the  day  when  Adam  fell,  every  child  of  Adam  fell  into 
the  cesspool  of  sin  with  him,  save  and  except  one,  and  that  was 
the  Blessed  Virgin,  mother  of  God.  She  was  kept  pure  that 
she  might  be  worthy  to  approach,  and  to  give  td  the  Eternal  God 
His  sacred  humanity.  She  was  kept  pure,  because  it  was  written 
in  the  prophecies,  "  Nothing  defiled  can  ever  approach  God." 
She  was  kept  pure,  because  she  was  to  give  to  the  Eternal  God, 
in  the  day  of  His  incarnation,  that  blood  which  He  shed  upon 
Calvary,  and  by  which  He  redeemed  the  world.  That  blood 
should  be  all  pure,  which  was  worthy  to  flow  in  the  veins  of 
Jesus  Christ.  Therefore  the  woman  who  bore  Him  was  con- 
ceived without  sin.  The  Catholic  Church,  moreover,  holds  up 
this  woman  as  the  very  type  of  Christian  womanhood.  All 
that  is  fair  and  beautiful  in  woman  may  be  gathered  up  into 
these  two  features ;  namely,  the  perfect  purity  of  the  Virgin, 
and  the  tender  and  loving  heart  of  the  mother.  There  is 
nothing  grander  than   virginity,    and  next  to  virginity   comes 


Character  of  the  Irish  People.  21 

the  beauty  of  the  maternity  of  the  Christian  mother ;  the 
mother  with  her  child  in  her  arms — next  to  the  Virgin,  con- 
secrated to  God  and  kneeUng  before  Jesus  Christ — is  the  most 
beautiful  thing  in  creation.  Our  race  depends  upon  her. 
Upon  her  purity  and  upon  her  sanctity  the  whole  future 
of  the  world  is  built  up.  The  English  Protestant  poet,  Words- 
worth, says  there  is  more  poetry,  to  say  nothing  of  the 
truth,  in  the  one  idea  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary,  as  the 
Catholic  Church  preaches  her — namely,  the  woman  who  com- 
bines the  infinite  purity  of  the  virgin  with  the  love  of  the 
mother — than  ever  was  written  by  the  pen  of  man.  The  Cath- 
olic Church  teaches  that  the  Virgin  of  Virgins  is  the  type  of  all 
Christian  maidenhood  in  her  purity,  and  of  all  Christian  mother- 
hood in  her  maternity.  She  alone  brought  forth  the  greatest 
man,  the  man  Jesus  Christ.  She  alone  brought  forth  the  only 
one  who  was  necessary  to  the  world,  without  whom  there  was 
no  salvation,  and  no  Heaven  for  man.  She  alone  brought  forth 
the  Son  of  God.  For  the  human  and  the  divine  nature  joined 
in  Him  were  so  joined  that  He  assumed  the  human  nature  into 
a  divine  person,  and  the  child  that  was  born  of  Mary  was  God. 
St.  Patrick  came  to  Ireland  fifteen  hundred  years  ago.  He 
came  with  the  adorable  Eucharist  in  one  hand,  holding  it  up 
for  the  people's  adoration,  as  their  God.  He  came  with  the 
image  of  Mary  in  the  other  hand,  holding  it  up  to  the  people's 
veneration,  as  their  mother.  He  told  the  Irish  heart  and  the 
Irish  mind  the  beautiful  story  of  Mary's  relations  to  God.  He 
told  the  Irish  maiden  the  tale  of  her  purity.  He  told  the  Irish 
mother  the  tale  of  her  maternity.  And  the  womanhood  of 
Ireland  so  learned  the  lesson  from  St.  Patrick,  receiving  the 
blessing  that  came  from  his  lips  with  the  name  of  Mary,  and 
have  so  continued  to  send  that  blessing  and  lesson  down  to 
their  daughters,  that  the  Irish  maiden  has  been  the  type  of 
purity  for  fifteen  hundred  years,  and  the  Irish  mother  the  type 
of  tenderness  and  of  highest  love.  The  Irish  mother  is  the  queen 
of  her  husband's  heart — the  woman  that  knows,  come  weal, 
come  woe,  that  she  can  never  be  removed  from  her  secure  posi- 
tion of  wife  and  mother — the  woman  who  knows,  that  in  joy 
or  in  sorrow,  that  man's  heart  is  hers — the  woman  that  knows 
that  her  love  for  that  man  is  consecrated  by  the  sacramental 
seal  of  the  Catholic  Church — this  woman,  alone,  I  must  say,  in 


22  Catholicity  as  Revealed  in  the 

all  that  I  ever  met.  displays,  by  some  supernatural  gr^e,  the 
virginal  expression  of  a  maiden's  innocence,  blended  with  the 
beautiful  expression  of  a  mother's  love.  For  this  womanhood, 
taking  for  its  type  the  blessed  Virgin  Mary,  the  Irish  Catholic 
man  has  been  taught,  from  his  earliest  infancy,  to  have  the 
deepest  veneration,  respect,  and  homage.  Going  back 
into  history,  he  finds  that  Ireland's  ancient  glory  was  virgin 
saints ;  that  Ireland,  for  centuries,  was  peopled  with  mon- 
asteries and  convents  of  holy  nuns ;  that  the  traditions  of 
sanctity  inaugurated  in  St.  Bridget  of  Kildare  passed  to  her 
'laughters,  and  to  this  day  it  seems  to  be  an  instinct  with 
the  maidenhood  of  Ireland  to  seek  the  sanctuary  and  the  ser- 
vice of  Jesus  Christ  in  every  land.  The  traditions  of  our  race 
tell  us  of  the  bravery  of  our  women,  and  they  mention  the 
name  of  but  one  woman,  in  the  long  roll  of  noble  Irish  women, 
who  brought  a  blush  to  the  nation's  face.  Our  history  tells 
us  that  the  purity,  the  sanctity,  the  virtue,  of  Irish  women 
were  the  pride  and  the  glory  of  Ireland  during  the  days  of  her 
grandeur,  the  consolation  and  sustaining  power  of  our  people 
in  the  day  of  their  oppression  and  their  misery ;  and,  therefore, 
the  very  Catholic  religion  that  made  the  woman  of  Ireland 
what  she  is,  has  made  the  men  of  Ireland  to  be  the  most  rever- 
ential, the  most  respectful,  and  the  most  faithful  of  men  to  their 
womanhood.  Look  at  the  history  of  the  Irish  race  in  times 
gone  by.  Look  at  it  to-day.  What  crime,  oh,  my  fellow-coun- 
trymen !  equals  the  crime  of  the  faithless  husband,  who  aban 
dons  the  girl  of  his  early  love  ?  What  crime  is  equal  to  that, 
which  (thank  God)  is  utterly  unknown  in  Ireland,  or  at  least  to 
every  Irishman  that  deserves  the  name,  by  which  a  husband  is 
enabled  to  cast  forth  and  to  desert  the  wife  of  his  bosom.  Ac- 
cording to  English  law  in  Ireland,  any  man  can  divorce  his  wife 
if  he  only  trump  up  an  accusation  against  her  and  support  it 
by  false  witnesses.  I  was  in  Ireland  some  years  ago  when 
that  law  was  passed.  I  knew  well  that  the  Irish  people  would 
never  accept,  never  obey  nor  act  upon  any  such  infamous 
and  anti-Christian  law;  that  no  Irishman  would  ever  ac- 
knowledge a  law  that  tells  him  he  can  put  away  the  wife 
of  his  bosom.  This  veneration  for  their  womanhood  is  pro- 
verbial amongst  the  Irish  race  and  the  Irish  people.  Never, 
or  scarcely  ever,  do   we  find   a   record   of  an   instance  of  its 


Character  of  the  Irish  People.  23 

violation  ;  and  of  all  the  crimes  that  can  be  laid  to  the  charge  of 
an  unfortunate  sinner  there  is  not  one  for  which  the  whole 
nation  veils  its  face  for  shame  and  for  true  heart-break  and 
desolation  as  when  this  unfortunate  crime  of  impurity  and 
of  infidelity  is  brought  home  to  the  Irish  woman  or  the  Irish 
husband.  Do  we  not  know  what  class  of  woman  was  the 
mother  that  reared  us  at  her  knee  ?  Oh !  are  we  not  familiar 
with  that  beautiful  image  that  rises  before  us  of  the  woman 
with  the  silver  hair  and  the  sweet  voice,  the  woman  with  the 
old  Spanish  beads  in  her  hand,  the  woman  that  taught  us,  when 
we  were  yet  unable  to  appreciate  it,  the  sweet  tale  of  the  love 
of  Jesus  Christ  for  Mary  His  mother,  and  the  love  of  Mary  for 
her  Child  ?  Do  we  not  all  know  the  devotion  of  our  woman- 
hood and  of  our  manhood  to  that  type  of  all  purity  and  of  all 
tenderness,  the  mother  of  God.  It  has  impressed  itself  upon 
our  race.  And  Henry  VIII.,  when  he  came  and  called  upon 
Ireland  to  separate  from  the  See  of  Rome,  from  the  Rock  of 
Ages,  from  the  Chair  of  Peter,  from  the  successor  of  the 
Apostles,  and  through  Peter,  of  Christ  himself,  came  as  a  man 
whom  no  Irishman  would  listen  to.  He  came  to  Ireland  as  a 
faithless  husband,  as  the  murderer  of  his  wife.  He  came  to  ask 
the  Irish  people  to  turn  away  the  image  of  Mary.  "  No,"  they 
answered  him,  in  the  voice  of  the  nation  as  of  one  man,  "  we 
would  rather  die — yea,  ten  thousand  times  rather  die,  than 
give  up  the  mother  that  brought  forth  the  Son  of  God."  For 
Mary  and  for  Mary's  cause  Ireland  drew  the  sword,  and  never 
was  a  more  chivalrous  sword  drawn  from  its  scabbard  than  the 
sword  which  Ireland  drew  in  defense  of  the  religion  that  con- 
secrated the  mother  of  God. 

The  third  great  feature  of  our  national  character,  my  friends, 
is  the  feature  of  national  courage.  And  I  hold  that  that  national 
courage  is  derived  from,  and  has  been  strengthened  by  the  relig- 
ion of  Ireland.  No  man  will  deny  to  an  Irishman,  no  matter 
what  else  he  denies  to  him,  the  attribute  of  courage.  He  may 
be  a  drunkard,  he  may  be  a  very  bad  man,  indeed  ;  he  may, 
perhaps,  have  won  the  young  heart  of  that  young  woman  only 
to  break  it ;  he  may  be  false  to  a  great  many  obligations  ;  but 
put  him  on  the  battle-field  with  a  loaded  musket  in  his  hand, 
put  him  in  the  thick  of  the  fight  with  a  fixed  bayonet,  and  my 
faith  upon   it,  whatever  else  may  be  wanting,  he  will  do  his 


24  Catholicity  as  Revealed  in  the 

duty  there.  Never,  in  the  long  and  disastrous  history  of  our 
race,  did  the  sun  set  upon  the  day  that  beheld  an  Irish  army  in 
the  field  dishonored.  All  Europe  is  covered  with  battle- 
fields that  record  the  glory  of  our  race  and  its  courage. 
All  Europe,  in  every  tongue,  repeats  the  continued  story 
of  Irish  prowess.  France,  Spain,  Austria,  and  Italy  tell 
the  tale  on  their  battle-fields,  but  never  have  they  been 
able  t-o  say  that  an  Irishman  was  found  dishonored  upon 
the  field  of  military  glory.  At  home  it  has  been  alleged  they 
were  bad  soldiers.  At  home  it  has  been  alleged  that  the  Irish 
never  knew  how  to  fight.  Well,  it  is  the  assertion  of  a  man  who 
denied  God — the  Frenchman,  Voltaire.  Is  it  not  strange  that 
a  people  who  are  able  to  sweep  victorious  over  every  battle- 
field abroad,  should  never  be  able  to  fight  at  home  ?  He  lied. 
Who  fought  the  Dane  for  three  hundred  years  ?  Who  met  him 
in  every  glade,  in  every  glen,  and  in  every  valley  in  the  land  ? 
Who  shook  him  off  upon  the  plains  of  Clontarf  into  the  sea,  as 
a  man  would  shake  a  snake  off  his  hand  ?  It  was  the  Irishman 
at  home.  Who  was  it  that  defended  the  banks  of  the  Boyne's 
ill-fated  river,  until  King  James  of  England  was  obliged  to  cry 
out :  "  Oh,  spare  my  English  subjects  !  "  Who  was  it  that 
defended  the  bridge  of  Athlone  and  stemmed  the  whole  tide 
of  the  English  army?  It  was  the  Irishman  at  home.  Who 
stood  three  times  in  the  breaches  of  Limerick  and  met  the  full 
brunt  of  the  English  army — the  best  soldiers  in  the  world — re- 
pulsing them  in  the  midst  of  death  and  glory  and  victory?  It 
was  the  Irish  at  home.  And  it  was  the  Irish  women — the 
women  of  Limerick— -who  stood  shoulder  to  shoulder  with  the 
men  on  the  ramparts,  and  drove  back  the  Saxon  at  the  third 
and  last  assault  upon  its  walls.  The  English  held  a  council 
of  war,  and  the  generals  made  up  their  minds  that  it  would  be 
impossible  to  take  Limerick,  because  the  women  alone  were 
able  to  fight  them  and  beat  them  back.  And  so  they  gave  up 
the  siege.  This  is  all  history.  I  am  not  drawing  on  my  imagi- 
nation. They  afterward  made  the  treaty  of  Limerick,  and 
signed  it  upon  the  treaty-stone,  because  they  were  afraid  not 
only  of  Sarsfield  and  his  men,  but  they  were  afraid  of  the 
strong,  modest,  pure-minded  women  of  Limerick,  prepared  to 
fight  again  in  defense  of  their  God  and  their  country. 

Now,  you   will  ask  me,    What   has   courage   to  do  with    a 


C liar  act  er  of  the  Irish  PeopU.  25 

nation's  religion?  Ah,  my  friends,  a  man's  religion  has  more 
to  do  with  his  pluck  and  courage  than  people  imagine.  Thanks 
be  to  God,  we  can  now  look  back  calmly  and  quietly  upon  the 
battle-fields  of  America.  We  can  now  read  the  record  that  used 
to  thrill  us,  frighten  us,  and  make  the  blood  run  cold  in  our 
veins  when  we  read  of  the  charges  at  Fredericksburg,  when  the 
Irish  were  mowed  down  in  columns.  We  can  look  back  coolly 
on  those  battle-fields  of  the  South.  And  I  ask  you  :  Will  not  the 
future  history  of  America  say  that  the  Irishman  who  fought  so 
bravely,  whether  in  the  cause  of  the  North  or  South,  was 
worthy  of  the  history  of  his  race  and  the  antecedents  of  his 
people  ?  Where  is  the  Irishman  of  whom  we  read,  that  dis- 
graced his  flag  or  country?  There  is  none.  Well  might  old 
George  II.  writhe  in  his  arm-chair  and  begin  to  cry  when  he 
heard  of  the  issue  of  the  battle  of  Fontenoy ;  how  his  dear 
son,  the  Duke  of  Cumberland,  was  within  an  inch  of  routing 
the  French  army,  when  the  Irish  Brigade  was  let  loose  on  him, 
like  lions  jumping  on  their  prey,  and  swept  him  from  the  field. 
Well  might  he  cry:  "Oh,  my  God!  what  a  terrible  thing  it  is 
that  I  have  such  accursed  laws  that  deprive  me  of  such  sub- 
jects as  these!"  There  were  fifty  thousand  such  subjects  on 
the  field  at  Waterloo,  and  we  know  what  they  did.  Fools  they 
were  to  be  fighting  England's  battles.  But  you  ask  me, 
What  has  a  man's  religion  to  do  with  all  this  ?  I  say  that 
the  Catholic  religion  creates  courage  and  bravery.  The  Cath- 
olic religion  teaches  a  man  that  wherever  there  is  a  good 
cause  it  is  worth  a  drop  of  blood.  It  teaches  a  man  that  hu- 
man life — most  precious,  most  magnificent,  to  be  preserved 
and  sanctified — is  to  be  sacrificed  on  the  altar  of  religion 
and  of  country  when  either  is  assailed.  The  Catholic  religion 
teaches  a  man  the  value  of  human  life.  It  teaches  him  to 
consecrate  that  life  to  God.  It  teaches  him  to  keep  that  life 
pure  for  God ;  but  it  also  teaches  him,  in  its  history  and  the 
history  of  its  martyrs  and  missionaries,  that  wherever  there  is 
a  just  and  noble  cause,  where  God  or  country  demands  it,  a 
man  must  make  his  life  cheap,  and  fling  it  out  upon  the  battle- 
field in  order  to  make  his  body,  as  it  were,  a  rampart  for  his  in- 
vaded country,  or  a  foundation-stone  upon  which  to  build  up 
the  noble  edifice  of  that  country's  liberty.  This  is  Catho- 
licity.    For  three  hundred  years  the  Church  of  God  sent  forth 


26  Catholicity  as  Revealed  in  the 

her  martyrs  to  fight  in  every  arena,  to  submit  to  every  torture, 
to  shed  their  blood  in  every  country,  in  order  to  attest  their 
faith  in  Jesus  Christ,  their  God.  For  two  thousand  years  the 
CathoHc  reHgion  has  taken  her  noblest  and  best  children,  those 
most  highly  educated,  those  most  gifted,  and  has  flung  them 
upon  every  foreign  shore,  as  a  man  would  scatter  seed  upon  a 
ploughed  field.  She  has  scattered  them  to  preach  the  gospel, 
and  in  that  preaching  to  suffer  martyrdom  and  death  for  their 
God  and  for  the  cause  of  their  religion.  It  is  the  same  to-day. 
At  this  very  hour  our  missionaries  are  languishing  in  the  prisons 
and  dungeons  of  China  and  Japan,  waiting  for  the  blessed 
morning  when  they  shall  be  dragged  forth  from  those  noisome 
dungeons  to  be  put  to  death  for  their  God  and  religion.  And 
so  the  Catholic  Church  teaches  a  man  that  when  his  country, 
that  has  the  next  claim  to  his  God  and  his  religion  upon  him, 
calls  upon  him  to  expose  his  life  in  striking  a  blow  for  her 
sacred  liberties  and  preserving  her  from  invasion,  from  degrada- 
tion, and  slavery,  that  he  gives  his  life  in  a  holy  and  just  cause, 
and  that  next  to  the  man  who  dies  for  his  God  and  for  his  re- 
ligion in  wearing  the  martyr's  crown,  is  the  noble  soul  that  dies 
for  its  country. 

My  friends,  what  does  all  .this  mean  ?  It  means  simply  this, 
that  the  Catholic  Church  and  the  Catholic  religion  creates  the 
natural  virtue  of  courage;  that  where  that  religion  makes  its 
impression  upon  a  race  that  is  naturally  fearless  and  courage- 
ous, it  brings  that  courage  to  the  highest  point  and  makes 
heroes  of  every  man  of  that  race.  St.  Patrick  preached  the 
gospel  of  Christ  to  a  people  who  were  naturally  brave.  They 
were  Celts.  They  had  Celtic  blood  in  their  veins — quick,  pure, 
red  blood  running  rapidly  through  their  veins.  They  had  a 
quick,  nervous  temperament,  likely  to  resent  an  injury  promptly 
and  fiercely,  easily  roused  and  as  easily  appeased.  It  was  to 
such  a  people  that  he  preached  the  Gospel.  And  when,  in  ad- 
dition to  their  natural  bravery,  he  held  out  this  glorious  doc- 
trine :  that  there  are  times  when  the  Almighty  God,  in  defense 
of  His  religion,  of  His  altar,  and  of  His  faith,  may  demand  the 
blood,  not  only  of  a  man,  but  of  a  whole  people,  and  that  it  is 
that  people's  duty  to  die  for  Him,  he  stirred  up  the  natural  ardor 
and  bravery  of  the  Irish  character,  and  brought  it  to  the  high- 
est perfection  of  heroism.     Do  we  not  see  this  in  the  history 


Character  of  the  Irish  People.  2J 

of  our  Irish  race  ?  For  six  hundred  sad  years  have  we 
been  fighting.  Three  hundred  years  did  we  fight  the  Danes 
in  defense  of  our  religion,  and  conquered.  For  the  next  four 
hundred  years  we  have  been  fighting  for  our  country,  and  have 
been  beaten.  Then  came  again  the  religious  element,  and  Eng- 
land demanded  not  only  that  Ireland  should  be  enslaved  and 
lose  her  nationality  but  that  she  should  also  give  up  her  religion. 
Quick  from  the  scabbard  flew  the  time-honored  sword,  and  the 
Irish,  as  fierce,  as  brave,  and  as  ungoverned  as  ever,  crossed 
swords  with  their  tyrants  and  invaders  in  defense  of  country 
and  of  altar,  and  for  three  hundred  years  they  have  fought,  and 
they  have  gained  at  least  the  religious  side  of  the  question,  for 
it  was  only  a  few  days  ago  that  England  gave  up  the  fight, 
sheathed  the  sword,  and  declared  that  she  gave  up  the  task  of 
Protestantizing  Ireland.  My  friends,  remember  that  when  the 
right  wing  of  an  army  is  beaten  and  put  to  flight  the  left  wing 
follows  very  soon.  There  were  two  wings  to  the  English  army 
in  Ireland  for  the  last  three  hundred  years.  The  right  wing  as- 
sailed her  religion  ;  the  left  wing  assailed  her  liberty.  The 
right  wing  has  been  beaten  and  has  confessed  itself  defeated. 
Ireland  has  gained  the  religious  triumph  of  her  faith  in  the 
destruction  or  disestablishment  of  the  Protestant  church  ;  and 
you  and  I  may  live  to  see  the  day  when  England's  left  wing 
will  be  put  to  flight,  and  Ireland  will  regain  her  liberty.  The 
people  that  can  fight  until  they  are  victorious  in  the  cause  of 
religion  and  of  God,  will  not  be  always  beaten  and  trampled 
upon  when  they  fight  for  their  national  liberty,  for  the  right  to 
make  their  own  laws  and  govern  themselves. 

Now,  this  courage  comes  to  us  from  our  religion.  What 
was  it  that  animated  Irishmen  during  the  three  hundred  years 
of  Danish  invasion  ?  It  was  the  strength  of  their  faith.  Every 
man  believed  that  in  battling  against  the  Danes  he  was  espous- 
ing himself  to  the  best  cause,  and  if  he  died  he  would  have 
some  claim  to  a  martyr's  crown.  What  thousands  of  Irish 
martyrs  and  missionaries  there  were  who  strewed  every  battle- 
field in  Ireland  during  those  three  hundred  years  ?  The  Dane 
came  to  make  war  upon  Christ  and  upon  religion.  Ireland  de- 
fended that  religion.  The  Dane  conquered  in  England,  in  Scot- 
land, in  the  north  of  France,  and  in  every  country  in  which  he 
ever  put  his  foot.  In  Ireland  alone,  when  he  assailed  the  Catholic 


28  Catholicity  as  Revealed  in  the 

faith  or  the  Christian  altar,  he  met  an  army  of  heroes,  because 
they  were  a  nation  of  martyrs,  and  he  was  actually  routed, 
though  it  took  three  hundred  years  to  do  it.  What  was  it  that 
kept  up  the  spirit,  strengthened  the  drooping  arm,  and  animated 
the  drooping  courage  of  our  down-trodden  and  persecuted  fore- 
fathers for  the  last  three  hundred  years,  when  to  be  a  Catholic 
meant  disgrace  and  exile,  when  to  be  a  Catholic  priest  meant 
death,  when  for  a  Catholic  to  send  his  own  son  to  school 
meant  exile  and  confiscation.  What  was  it  that  made  us 
so  strong  and  courageous  that,  in  spite  of  England,  we  were 
Catholics,  we  were  priests,  and  we  sent  our  children  to  school?  It 
was  our  glorious  faith.  It  was  our  religion,  the  divine  principle  of 
supreme  life,  that  was  in  us ;  and  therefore  I  lay  claim  to  this  as  the 
great  secret  of  that  courage  which  has  never  yet  failed  in  the  hour 
of  danger,  which  has  never  been  found  wanting,  but  true  as 
steel  whenever  the  enemy  had  to  be  met  and  wherever  blood 
had  to  be  shed  in  a  just  and  noble  cause.  Here,  again,  I  grant 
you  that  out  of  this  very  courage  of  our  race  there  spring 
certain  defects,  just  as  we  see  that  fairies,  ghosts,  and  supersti- 
tions of  that  kind  may  even  spring  out  of  our  exaggerated  faith. 
I  grant  you  that  an  Irishman  is  a  little  too  pugnacious.  I  my- 
self have  seen  a  fellow  in  Ireland  trailing  his  coat  after  him 
through  the  streets  of  Galway,  flourishing  his  stick,  and  asking 
everybody  that  passed,  as  a  special  favor,  if  he  would  not  be  kind 
enough  to  stand  on  the  tail  of  it.  But,  after  all,  just  as  we  see 
that  there  are  some  beautiful  features  attaching  to  their  super- 
stition, so  there  are  beautiful  features  attaching  to  their  cour- 
age, which  often  leads  them  to  make  a  fight  for  the  sake  of  the 
fight.  For  instance,  nothing  is  more  common  in  Ireland,  when 
a  row  is  going  on  at  a  fair,  when  sticks  are  seen  in  the  air  and 
men  are  tumbling  about  on  every  side,  than  for  a  quiet,  peace- 
able farmer  coming  along,  to  take  off  his  coat,  roll  it  up  and 
throw  it  on  the  roadside,  then  taking  his  stick,  and,  after  look- 
ing on  for  a  moment  to  see  which  side  was  losing,  which  was 
the  weaker  side,  rush  into  the  thick  of  the  fight  and  smash 
the  first  head  that  came  to  him.  At  any  rate  it  is  a  comfort 
to  think  that  he  hadn't  the  instinct  to  take  the  side  which  was 
winning.  That  is  not  an  Irishman's  way.  When  a  side  is  win- 
ning there  is  generally  little  fighting  shown,  as  the  other  side  want 
to  run,  but  the  men  I  describe  go  in  for  fighting  and  not  running. 


Character  of  the  Irish  People.  29 

There  is  another  beautiful  feature  in  the  Irish  character.  We 
must  approach  it  reverently,  my  friends,  for  it  is  a  most  beauti- 
ful feature,  and  it  is  the  offspring  of  our  religion.  It  is  the 
tender  character  of  the  love  and  respect  that  every  true  Irish- 
man has,  all  the  world  over,  for  his  dead.  The  Catholic  religion 
teaches  that  the  dead  are  not  to  be  forgotten,  that  the  prayers 
of  the  living  can  follow  them  beyond  the  grave,  and  through 
the  tomb  into  the  land  of  the  invisible,  there  to  relieve  them  in 
the  days  of  their  purgation.  The  Catholic  Church  employs 
herself,  all  the  year  round,  in  solemn  offices  and  sacrifices  for 
the  dead.  Their  names  are  held  in  veneration.  If  they  were 
distinguished  for  heroic  sanctity  they  receive  the  passport  to 
the  only  true  immortality,  in  being  recorded  amongst  the  saints. 
There  they  live  unforgotten,  even  when  king  and  emperor,  hero 
and  philosopher  have  passed  into  oblivion.  The  only  race  of 
men  that  are  never  forgotten  are  the  Catholic  dead,  who  die  in 
the  odor  of  sanctity,  for  Jesus  Christ.  And  so  the  same 
Church  teaches  us  that  we  must  not  be  unmindful  of  our  dead, 
like  those  who  have  no  hope,  but  that  we  must  follow  them 
with  our  love,  we  must  enshrine  them  in  our  memories,  we  must 
bring  them  before  our  minds  in  prayer,  and  we  must  make  our  dead 
come  forth  by  virtue  of  our  religion  from  the  very  tomb  in 
which  they  lie,  until  we  lay  them  at  the  foot  of  the  altar,  where 
God  crowns  them  with  everlasting  rest  and  peace.  This  is  the 
Catholic  religion.  Every  other  religion  outside  the  Catholic 
Church  buries  a  man  in  his  grave  and  then  leaves  him  as  if  they 
had  buried  an  animal.  The  only  thing  they  desire  to  do  is  to 
forget  the  dead  as  soon  as  they  can,  be  he  a  father,  brother, 
son,  or  husband.  Well,  the  recollection  of  him  only  mars 
their  present  joy.  It  only  comes  to  create  sorrow.  They 
can  do  nothing  for  him.  But,  let  me  say,  there  are  many 
tender  hearts  outside  the  Catholic  Church,  who  consecrate 
the  last  resting-places  of  their  beloved  dead,  but  it  is  only 
in  the  Church,  amongst  Catholics,  that  that  consecrated 
image  is  enshrined  in  prayer.  There,  all  the  emotions  of  the 
heart  come  forth  ;  there,  every  feeling  of  the  tenderest  love  is 
poured  forth  in  prayer,  and  the  name  of  the  loved  one  is  sent 
up  towards  Heaven,  or  laid  upon  the  altar  with  sacrifice  before 
God.  St.  Patrick  preached  this  to  the  Irish  people.  He  found  a 
people  that  were  not  quick  to  forget  their  dead.     He  found  a 


30  Catholicity  as  Revealed  in  the 

people  naturally  passionate,  who,  even  when  they  were  pagan, 
loved  to  treasure  the  memories  of  those  who  were  gone  before. 
But,  when  he  taught  them  that  they  might  follow  their  loved  ones 
beyond  the  grave,  and  that  they  might  lift  them  out  of  the  ex- 
piatory flames,  where  souls  are  saved  yet  so  as  by  fire,  and 
where  they  must  remain  until  they  have  paid  the  last  farthing, 
and  when  he  taught  them  the  consoling  doctrine  of  sacrifice  for 
their  dead,  then  did  the  Irish  heart  respond  to  him;  the  Irish 
heart  expanded  before  him,  and  all  the  Irish  love,  generosity, 
and  keen  perception  that  springs  from  this  was  all  centred  upon 
their  dead.  Thus,  from  the  earliest  dawn  of  our  religious  his- 
tory do  we  find  that  the  dead  were  enshrined  in  consecrated 
ground,  that  their  places  of  repose  were  most  carefully  guarded, 
and  that  they  were  surrounded  by  all  a  people's  care  and  a 
people's  love,  and  to  this  day  the  spot  of  earth  most  hallowed, 
most  revered,  and  most  loved  by  the  Irishman  is  the  place  where 
his  aged  father  and  mother  and  others  of  his  loved  ones  lie. 
Nothing  is  more  beautiful  than  this  trait  of  the  Irish  character. 
Why,  I  remember,  when  I  was  a  boy,  my  mother  taking  me  to 
the  graves  where  her  father  and  mother  and  those  who  went  be- 
fore her  were  buried ;  and  also  bringing  me  to  the  grave  where 
my  father's  people  were  buried,  and  there,  kneeling  down,  pour- 
ing forth  her  soul  in  prayer.  She  would  make  pilgrimages  to 
these  sacred  places,  and  shed  tears  for  those  who  had  died  twen- 
ty and  thirty  years  before,  as  though  they  were  lying  recently 
dead  before  her,  so  fresh  and  green  were  they  in  her  Irish 
memory.  And  so  it  is  with  our  people.  They  love  their 
dead.  The  very  dead  in  the  Irish  grave  in  the  green  soil  over 
the  ocean  are  the  strongest  bond  that  binds  you  and  me  to  the 
land  of  our  birth  this  night.  I  remember  meeting  an  Irish  emi-  \ 
grant,  who  had  come  to  America,  had  made  a  name  and  a  for- 
tune for  himself,  and  had  returned  to  visit  the  land  of  his  birth. 
I  met  him  shortly  after  he  landed  in  Cork,  and  I  saw  him  in 
such  a  hurry,  so  anxious  to  get  away,  that  I  asked  him  what  in 
the  world  was  the  matter,  and  why  he  could  not  stay  a  day  or 
two  in  Cork  to  see  the  beauties  of  the  city.  "  Oh  no,"  he  said, 
"  I  must  first  go  to  see  my  father  and  mother's  grave."  He  hur- 
ried away  into  Connaught,  until  he  came  to  a  little  sea-beaten 
grave-yard,  where  the  waves  of  the  mighty  Atlantic  rolled  in 
upon  the  Irish  strand,  and  there  he  knelt  down  and  broke  his 


Character  of  the  Irish  People.  31 

heart  again  over  those  graves,  just  as  if  the  old  people  were 
dead  but  yesterday.  This  is  the  Irish  character,  my  friends. 
It  is  created  by  their  religion,  as  you  see.  I  grant  you  that  this 
may  sometimes  run  to  excess.  No  matter  how  poor  an  Irish- 
man may  be,  or  his  friends,  there  is  one  thing  they  will  always 
strain  everything  to  do,  and  that  is  to  give  him  a  splendid 
funeral.  Why?  Because  the  instinct  of  their  race  is  to  honor 
their  dead.  Now,  I  ask  you,  is  not  this  a  beautiful  trait  in  the 
character  of  a  man  ?  Is  there  anything  more  ennobling  or 
more  consoling  to  us  living,  than  to  know  that  when  we  are 
dead  and  gone  we  shall  not  be  forgotten  ?  Oh  !  what  a  consol- 
ing thought  to  the  aged  father  or  mother,  bowed  down  with 
years  and  infirmities,  as  they  are  lying  upon  their  dying  bed,  to 
think  that  when  they  are  dead  and  gone  for  years  and  years, 
their  names  will  still  be  upon  the  lips  of  those  they  leave  be- 
hind them  ;  that  their  memories  will  still  be  treasured  in  the 
hearts  of  their  children  and  grandchildren,  and  that  their  prayers 
will  go  forth  in  living  recollection  of  them.  We  read  of  an  aged 
man  that  was  dying,  whose  last  prayer  to  God  was,  "  Lord, 
keep  my  memory  green."  If  that  man  had  been  a  Catholic  he 
need  not  have  made  that  prayer.  Well  would  he  have  known 
that  for  many  and  many  a  year  his  memory  would  be  green  in 
the  recollection  of  those  whom  he  left  behind  him.  Well  would 
he  know  that  his  name  would  be  the  theme  of  their  conversa- 
tion, that  at  the  sound  of  his  name,  years  after  he  had  passed 
away,  the  Irish  tear  would  spring  to  the  Irish  eye,  and  Irish 
prayers  'would  ascend  to  God  for  him,  and  for  his  everlasting 
peace  and  happiness. 

One  trait  more  of  the  Irish  character,  and  I  have  done.  The 
average  Irishman,  wherever  he  is,  has  a  great  many  faults,  like 
other  men,  but  if  you  look  upon  them  with  an  unprejudiced  eye 
you  will  agree  with  me  that  they  are  faults  of  a  peculiar  nature, 
and  they  are  all  on  the  surface.  They  are  faults  of  a  peculiar 
nature.  There  are  two  classes  of  crimes  that  a  man  may  com- 
mit. There  are  crimes  that  are  characterized  by  meanness,  by 
grasping  avarice,  filthy  lust,  and  defiling  impurity.  There  are 
crimes  that  are  committed  in  secret,  and  the  man,  all  the  time, 
wears  a  smiling  face  and  a  fair  exterior.  There  are  crimes  over 
which  the  cloak  of  hypocrisy  is  thrown,  and  they  are  concealed 
from   public   knowledge.     Then  there   are  crimes  of  another 


32  Catholicity  as  Revealed  in  the 

character,  committed  from  impulse,  on  the  spur  of  the  moment, 
not  involving  a  deep  dishonor,  although,  perhaps,  involving 
great  disgrace,  but  which  the  unfortunate  culprits  did  not  know 
how  to  conceal,  nor  how  to  throw  the  mantle  of  hypocrisy 
around  them,  to  hide  them  from  the  eye  of  the  world.  Now, 
of  tnese  two  classes  of  crime  the  Irishman  goes  in  for  the 
second,  the  open  thing,  the  thing  that  everybody  sees  and 
knows.  If  he  gets  drunk  he  does  not  lock  himself  up  in  his 
room  in  order  to  take  a  quiet  bout  of  two  or  three  days,  ending 
in  delirium  tremens.  No,  he  goes  out  to  the  public  house,  in- 
vites a  few  friends  around  him,  and  gets  in  company.  If  he  has 
a  grudge  against  a  man  he  will  not  dog  his  steps  in  the  dark 
with  knife  or  pistol,  but  will  go  and  smash  that  man's  head  in 
open  day,  and  on  the  street,  in  fair  fight.  My  friends,  there  are 
some  classes  of  crimes  utterly  unknown  in  Ireland.  Ireland 
produces  no  female  criminals  of  any  kind.  That  is  a  strong  as- 
sertion. Irish  women  at  home,  in  the  old  country,  never  com- 
mit crime  of  any  kind.  You  may  tell  me  I  am  saying  too 
much  for  them,  but  I  am  saying  what  I  know  to  be  true.  Look 
at  our  criminal  annals.  Look  at  the  records  of  crime  in  Ire- 
land, and  where  do  you  find  a  female  criminal  ?  Where  do  you 
ever  see  a  female  in  the  criminal  dock,  under  sentence  of  death, 
or  a  woman  in  Ireland  accused  of  some  dreadful,  hidden  sin,  or 
of  murder?  Never.  There  is  no  such  thing  known.  Nobody 
ever  dreamed  of  such  a  thing.  Again,  there  is  another  class  of 
crimes  that  are  not  found  in  Ireland  at  all.  There  is  a  crime 
which  is  very  popular  in  England,  and  it  is  called  garroting. 
Let  me  explain  it.  Two  or  three  fellows  stand  at  a  dark  corner 
of  a  street,  which  a  decent  man  has  to  pass.  Presently,  they 
hear  him  coming.  They  walk  up  softly  behind  him  and  one 
puts  his  arm  around  his  neck  and  half  chokes  him  to  death, 
while  the  others,  after  he  is  insensible,  take  the  money  out  of 
his  pockets,  and  leave  him  more  dead  than  alive.  This  is  called 
garroting.  Don't  you  perceive  the  meanness  of  it  ?  They 
half  strangle  a  man  in  order  to  get  the  few  pennies  he  may  have 
in  his  pockets,  or  his  watch.  The  meanness  of  it  is  that  they 
attack  him  from  behind.  For  the  last  ten  or  twelve  years  this 
crime  has  been  very  popular  in  the  English  cities.  It  was 
never  heard  of  in  Ireland  until  we  were  told  by  the  last  week's 
Irish  papers,  a  short  time  since,  two  respectable  gentlemen  were 


Character  of  the  Irish  People.  33 

garroted  in  the  streets  of  Dublin,  at  which  the  people  were 
much  frightened.  But  what  does  it  turn  out  to  be  ?  A  lot  of 
Englishmen  came  over  from  London  to  try  their  hands  there, 
and  were  captured  at  their  vile  work.  Look  at  the  records  of 
the  criminal  court  in  Ireland.  I  have  been  examining  them  at 
the  various  assizes.  You  scarcely  ever  find  a  man  placed  in  the 
dock  to  be  tried  for  robbery,  for  mere  plundering,  for  stealing,  or 
for  attacking  a  man  and  taking  his  money.  So  sure  as  a  man  is 
tried  for  attacking  a  man  in  Ireland,  you  will  find  that  it  was  for 
some  grudge  he  had  against  him,  and  that  he  went  out  to  fight 
him.  You  will  find  it  was  some  injury  he  received,  and  he  want- 
ed to  avenge  it  promptly  and  quickly ;  you  will  find  it  was  some 
faction  fight  or  other,  in  which  there  was  pluck,  not  like  the  dirty,, 
sneaking  robber  that  would  knock  a  man  down  in  order  to  take  his 
money.  But  these  are  crimes.  They  are  murders,  and  they  are  to  be 
deplored.  We  preach  to  our  people,  and  ask  them  for  God's  love 
not  to  do  it.  A  landlord  is  sometimes  shot  down.  I  remem- 
ber detailing  a  case  of  an  Irish  tenant  and  how  he  was  treated. 
to  an  English  gentleman  whom  I  met  in  a  railroad  carriage. 
He  said  to  me.  "You  are  a  priest?"  "Yes,  sir,"  said  I,  "I 
am."  "  You  are  an  Irish  priest?"  "  Most  certainly."  "  Well,, 
now,  with  all  the  influence  that  the  priests  have  in  Ireland,  oh,  why 
do  you  not  try  to  keep  your  people  from  murdering  each  other 
in  that  dreadful  way  ?  Just  fancy,  you  know,  murdering  a  land- 
lord because  he  is  a  landlord  !  "  And  he  went  on  in  that  strain, 
for  some  time.  I  says,  "  Look  here,  sir;  here  is  a  case  that  I 
met  with  last  Aveek,  and  I  will  give  it  to  you  just  as  it  happened, 
and  will  vouch  for  its  truth."  I  told  him  of  a  man  who  did  not 
owe  a  penny  of  his  rent,  who  had  drained  a  piece  of  bog  which 
he  held  at  thirty  shillings  an  acre.  He  had  cultivated  it  at  con- 
siderable labor  and  expense.  The  landlord  came  and  told  him 
he  must  give  it  up.  He  asked  where  he  was  to  put  his  wife 
and  children.  He  told  him  he  didn't  care — that  he  must  leave 
the  house  and  give  it  up.  The  tenant  replied :  "  You  know  I 
have  made  this  place  worth  a  good  deal.  I  have  put  my  labor 
and  capital  into  it.  I  hold  it  under  thirty  shillings,  but  I  am 
willing  to  give  you  anything  that  any  other  man  will  give  you." 
"  No,"  says  the  landlord ;  "  whoever  gets  it,  you  won't  have  it." 
To  my  surprise,  this  gentleman  said  :  "And  didn't  your  friend' 
shoot  the  landlord  ? "     I  said,  "No,  sir,  he  didn't ;  he  took  his 

3 


34  Catholicity  as  Revealed  in  the 

wife  and  children  to  the  next  town,  and  is  living  there  in 
poverty."  Said  the  gentleman  :  "  It  was  a  very  strange  thing 
he  didn't  shoot  the  landlord,  for  by  this  and  by  that  I'd  have  shot 
him  !  "  There  was  the  quiet,  gentlemanly  Englishman.  Now, 
God  forbid  that  I  should  justify  these  offenses.  No  ;  the  very 
men  who  do  these  things  do  not  justify  them,  or  themselves 
either.  They  are  heart-broken  afterwards  when  they  see  the 
evils  they  have  done.  On  the  spur  of  the  moment,  when  they 
see  their  most  sacred  rights  trampled  upon,  and  they  are  not 
allowed  to  live  on  the  land  they  have  tilled,  these  crimes  are 
committed.  But,  my  friends,  the  Irishman's  crimes  are  on 
the  surface.  One  thing  is  certain,  that  if  there  is  anything  bad 
in  the  man,  out  it  comes.  You  need  not  be  a  bit  afraid  that 
he  will  go  behind  the  door  to  do  it.  He  will  out  and  say  any- 
thing that  he  has  to  say.  It  is  a  bad  thing,  of  course,  to  com- 
mit a  sin  at  any  time ;  but  I  must  say,  if  we  are  to  have  sins, 
give  me  the  sins  above-board,  not  the  sneaking  sins  of  the  gar- 
roter,  not  the  sin  of  the  man  who  locks  himself  up  to  drink, 
not  the  vile  sins  of  the  men  who  are  leading  impure  lives,  en- 
deavoring all  the  time  to  make  things  as  nice  and  fair  to  the 
public  as  possible. 

Now,  that  very  faculty  and  propensity  of  our  national  charac- 
ter to  be  above-board  and  to  say  right  out  whatever  is  to  be 
said,  comes  from  the  Catholic  religion.  The  doctrine  of  the 
confessional  teaches  a  man  that  he  is  responsible  to  God,  and 
that,  compared  with  that  responsibility,  the  responsibility  to  his 
fellow-men  is  nothing.  The  Catholic  religion  teaches  a  man 
that  if  he  commits  a  sin,  no  matter  how  hidden  it  is,  it  must 
come  out  in  confession  ;  he  must  bring  it  to  the  surface,  and 
lay  it  down  there  with  shame  and  sorrow  at  the  foot  of  the 
cross.  The  Catholic  religion  teaches  a  man  that  there  is  a  far 
higher  standard  and  a  more  dreadful  judgment  than  that  of 
society — that  God  sees  him  even  in  the  darkness  of  night,  that 
God  watches  him  closely  everywhere,  and  that  it  is  a  very  little 
matter  to  a  man  what  his  associates  may  think  of  him  if  God 
has  reason  to  think  highly  of  him.  Therefore  it  is  that  this 
very  doctrine  engenders  a  certain  kind  of  contempt  for  the 
world's  opinion.  The  Protestant  man  has  no  other  judge  than 
society.  He  is  afraid  of  his  life  as  to  what  his  fellow-men  think 
of  him,  and  of  the  judgment  they  will  pass  upon  him.     He  is 


Character  of  the  Irish  People.  35 

never  taught  by  his  reh'gion  to  bring  himself  and  his  sins  before 
the  higher  tribunal.     He  has  never  been  taught  to  speak  these 
sins  out.     He  has  never  been  taught  to  give  the  evil  that  is  in 
him  shape  and  form  in  the  words  of  his  confession.     The  most 
he  has  been  taught  is  to  go  now  and  then  to  the  Lord  and  say, 
"  O  Lord,  I  am  a  sinner !     We  are  all  sinners  !  "     That  is  very 
easily  said.     But   a  Catholic  is  obliged  to  come  and  say:  "On 
such  and  such   a  day  I   stole  ten  dollars  from  a  man  ;  that  very 
evening  I  used  some  of  that  ten  dollars,  and  committed  dread- 
ful sins — such  and  such  things.     Also,  that  on  such  and  such  a 
morning  I  went  out  without  saying  my  prayers  or  bending  my 
knee  to  God.     The  very  first  man  that  I  met  I  told  him  a  lie 
about  a  fellow-laborer.     I  told  him  a  mean,  dirty  lie."     Now, 
you  see  it  is  quite  a  different  thing  w^hen  you  have  to  shape  and 
form  each  individual  sin,  to   look  it  in  the   face,  say  you  are 
ashamed  of  it,  and  then  lay  it  down  at  the  feet  of  our  Lord, 
breathing  it  into  the  ear  of  your  fellow-man,  from  that  sort  of 
Protestant  confession  which  says,  "  O  Lord,  we  are  all  sinners !" 
The  Catholic  Church  enforces  this  doctrine  of  confession,  mak- 
ing a  man  of  sin  look  into  himself,  bring  himself  out,  and  lay 
himself  down  in  all  his  ulcerous  sores  and  spiritual  deformity 
and  filth  at  the  feet  of  Jesus  Christ.     It  teaches  a  man  that  the 
opinion  of  the  world  is  not  to  be  valued,  that  he  need  not  care 
what  men  think  of  him  if  he  knows  that  he  is  right  before  God. 
What  profit  would  it  be  to  me  if  you  thought  something  I  had 
done  was  blameless  and  praiseworthy,  if  I  knew  in  my  heart  that 
it  was  sinful  or  wrong ?  what  consolation  would   it  be  to  me? 
I  declare  to  you,  as  an  Irishman  and  as  a  Catholic,  that  if  I 
had   any  such  thing  in  my  heart  now,  it  would  be  a  positive 
relief  to  throw  it  out  before  you  all. 

And  now,  my  friends,  such  is  the  Irish  character — and  I  think 
in  these  salient  traits  I  have  not  exaggerated  it.  I  did  not  come 
here  to  flatter,  nor  did  I  come  here  to  exaggerate  the  virtues  of 
Irishmen,  but  I  think  you  will  all  recognize  that  there  is  a  real- 
ity in  these  traits  that  I  have  put  before  you.  You  see  them 
in  the  men  we  meet  every  day.  This  is  the  kind  of  man  we 
have  to  deal  with,  whenever  we  meet  a  thorough  Irishman. 
Now,  is  there  not  something  grand  and  noble  in  all  this?  Is 
there  not  something  magnificent  in  the  power  of  mind  that  is 
able  so  to  realize  the  unseen  things  of  God  ?     I  know  nothing 


36  Catholicity  as  Revealed  in  the 

more  magnificent  than  the  Catholic  man  bowing  down  before 
the  Blessed  Eucharist.  I  admire  that  man's  power  of  mind. 
I  say  to  myself,  What  a  magnificent  intelligence  is  there,  that  is 
able  so  easily  to  rise  above  the  mere  evidence  of  the  senses,  and 
to  realize  the  hidden  God  on  the  altar.  I  admire  the  magnifi- 
cent religion  of  that  man,  guided  by  faith,  that  is  enabled  to 
thrill  him  with  fear  and  love.  I  ask  you  if  the  blessed  sacra- 
ment were  there  on  the  altar  this  evening,  do  you  imagine  that 
I  could  speak  to  you  as  I  have  done  ?  Why  !  I  would  be  afraid 
of  my  life  to  make  my  jokes  and  make  you  laugh.  If  the 
blessed  sacrament  were  exposed  there,  is  there  one  among  you 
who  would  not  have  a  feeling  of  reverence  that  you  have  not 
now,  as  if  you  saw  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  with  His  hand  up- 
lifted before  you.  Is  not  this  grand  ?  Is  it  not  a  noble  trait  of 
mind — this  Irish  faculty,  this  Catholic  faculty,  if  you  will,  of 
realizing  things  we  never  saw?  Again,  is  it  not  grand  to  have 
that  veneration,  that  respect,  and  that  homage  for  that  holy 
purity,  as  reflected  particularly  in  the  chaste  Irish  Catholic 
woman  and  mother,  wherever  she  is.  Do  not  imagine  that  I 
mean  for  an  instant  to  say  that  these  virtues  do  not  exist  out- 
side the  Church,  and  especially,  this  virtue  of  purity,  I  honor 
every  pure-minded  woman  everywhere,  for  I  am  willing  to  be- 
lieve that  in  all  beams  the  purity  of  the  Virgin  and  mother. 
But,  this  I  do  say,  I  am  sure  of  it  in  my  Irish  countrywomen.  Is 
it  not  grand  to  see  the  homage  that  our  race  has  paid  for  fifteen 
hundred  years  to  the  Catholic  expression  of  purity  in  maid  and 
in  mother.  Is  not  this  national  courage  of  Ireland  grand  and 
magnificent,  a  courage  that  is  invincible,  that  has  never  been 
crushed  ?  This  courage  has  kept  alive  the  race  for  eight  hun- 
dred years  so  that  we  are  a  nation,  and  that  we  shall  be  a  nation 
unto  the  end  of  time.  I  can  imagine  Ireland  crushed  to  the 
dust.  I  can  imagine  this  nation  speaking  to  England,  saying, 
"■  I  will  be  a  province  or  anything  you  like  ;  only  give  me  leave 
to  live,  and  take  off  this  horrible  persecution  from  me.  Give 
me  an  acre  of  land  and  I  will  be  called  anything  you  like — West 
Britain,  or  some  such  name.  We  will  be  like  the  Scotch  "  (who 
once  had  such  a  glorious  nationality,  and  have  none  now). 
Crush  and  trample  on  Ireland  as  you  will,  to  the  last  day  of  the 
world's  history  Ireland  shall  be  a  nation  in  spite  of  you.  Is 
not  this  grand  ?    And  I  say  that  the  soul  of  Ireland's  nation- 


Character  of  the  Irish  People.  37 

ality  is  Ireland's  religion.  I  say  that  every  Irishman  that  does 
not  love  his  nationality  is  not  worthy  of  his  religion.  And  in 
proportion  as  he  loves  his  religion  with  all  his  heart  and  soul,  in 
the  same  proportion  will  he  feel  every  strong  Irish  trait  of  his 
race,  and  of  his  nation.  Is  not  also  this  feeling  of  reverence 
for  the  dead  a  beautiful  trait  ?  There  is  nothing  more  distaste- 
ful than  to  see  one  from  whom  those  around  him  receive  the 
blessings  of  education,  the  means  of  support,  and  perhaps  a 
handsome  fortune,  buried  and  forgotten.  How  grand  is  the 
memory  that  nourishes  the  dead,  that  makes  them  present  in 
their  absence,  that  follows  them  upon  the  wing  of  prayer  into 
the  tomb  and  beyond  it,  and  lives  as  much  for  them  after  their 
death  as  before. 

Finally,  is  it  not  a  grand  thing  in  our  national  character  that 
whatever  vices  we  have — and  the  Lord  knows  we  have  a  great 
many — they  are  all  on  the  surface?  There  is  no  hypocrisy 
about  it.  If  an  Irishman  is  a  little  the  worse  for  liquor,  every- 
body knows  it,  and  in  England  they  take  advantage  of  this 
openness  of  character.  Everybody  who  has  had  a  little  some- 
thing to  drink  is  pointed  out  with  :  "  There  is  one  of  them 
again  ;  look  at  him  !  "  And  this  is,  perhaps,  said  by  a  fellow 
that  locks  himself  up  in  his  house,  gets  drunk  for  a  week,  and 
nobody  is  the  wiser  for  it.  He  would  drink  the  poor  Irishman 
blind.  Since  I  have  been  in  New  York  I  have  got  anonymous 
letters  from  people,  giving  extracts  from  newspapers,  detailing  a 
row  in  a  saloon,  where  an  Irishman  broke  another  one's  head, 
and  I  was  asked  if  these  were  the  people  I  was  glorifying,  and 
whether  they  were  the  countrymen  I  was  so  proud  of.  I  am 
free  to  say  I  am  proud  of  them,  but  not  in  their  drunkenness 
and  sin.  God  forbid.  But  I  say  that  their  drunkenness  and  sin 
are  all  on  the  surface,  which  every  man  can  see  for  himself.  It 
is  all  before  God  and  man.  At  least,  I  am  proud  of  them  in 
this  :  that  they  do  not  care  to  hide  their  short-comings  and  put 
on  a  smiling  face,  like  a  fine-looking  pear  with  a  rotten  core,  that 
has  been  lying  in  the  sun  under  the  tree  all  the  time. 

And  now,  my  friends,  I  think  I  have  said  enough  to  warrant 
me  in  congratulating  you  and  myself  upon  our  religion — that 
we  are  Catholics.  We  come  from  a  race  of  Catholic  martyrs ; 
we  are  descendants  of  Catholic  heroes ;  we  are  the  descendants 
of  men  who  fought  and  who  knew  how  to  fight  for  their  coun- 


38  Catholicity  as  Revealed  in  the 

try  and  for  their  religion  ;  and  although  we  have  cast  our  lot  in 
a  far-distant  land,  we  are  still  Irishmen.  And  when  you  and 
your  descendants  have  been  in  America  five  hundred  years,  in 
Australia,  or  any  other  country,  even  to  the  end  of  time,  the  best 
drop  of  blood  in  your  veins  will  be  the  drop  of  your  Irish  blood. 
The  best,  purest,  grandest,  and  highest  sentiment  that  will  ever 
throb  in  your  hearts  will  be  your  love  for  the  Catholic  religion, 
and  for  the  great  Catholic  country  from  which  you  have  come. 
Therefore,  I  ask  you  to  remember  that  both  that  religion  and 
that  country  have  their  eyes  upon  you.  The  Catholic  Church 
asks  you  to  be  her  missionaries  in  this  great  new  country.  The 
Catholic  Church  asks  the  rising  generation  of  Irishmen  not  to 
forget  the  sanctity  of  their  religion,  but  to  protect  it  and  to 
live  up  to  it,  in  order  to  be  all  that  I  have  described  as  the 
leading  features  of  our  race.  The  Catholic  Church,  your 
mother,  appeals  to  you  to  educate  yourselves  and  your  children, 
so  as  to  make  them  come  up  to  the  level  of  any  in  the  land. 
You  must  use  the  brains  that  God  Almighty  has  given  to  us  all, 
Irishmen,  for  whatever  else  He  deprived  us  of  He  gave  us 
plenty  of  brains.  Give  fair  play  to  these  brains  by  education. 
Above  all,  abstain  from  the  abominable  sin  of  drunkenness.  The 
Catholic  Church  asks  you  to  help  her  by  helping  yourselves.  The 
citizens  of  America  are  looking  about  for  a  religion,  and  in  the 
name  of  the  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost,  if  we  Catholics  are 
only  what  we  ought  to  be  (and  in  that  name  I  ask  you  to  be 
what  we  ought  to  be),  the  example  of  your  religion  in  each  and 
every  one  of  you,  will  bring  hundreds  into  the  Catholic  Church. 
It  is  in  vain  for  me  or  the  like  of  me  to  be  preaching  and  minis- 
tering if  you  do  not  rise  to  the  grandeur  of  your  national 
character,  by  the  exercise  and  practice  of  your  holy  religion, 
by  confession  and  communion,  by  loving  obedience  to  your  God, 
by  your  sobriety,  your  peaceableness,  and  your  obedience  to  law. 
The  Gospel  will  be  preached  in  vain,  for  every  word  that  the 
priest  utters  will  be  contradicted  in  your  lives.  The  Church 
speaks,  that  you  may  listen  to  and  apply  her  doctrine  in  your 
daily  lives.  Ireland  looks  to  you.  We  are  few  now  at  home.  I 
remember  when  we  were  nearly  nine  millions.  I  remember  see- 
ing two  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  around  Daniel  O'Connell. 
You  could  scarcely  assemble  that  number  now  in  a  whole  prov- 
ince in  Ireland.     They  have  decimated  the  land.      The  bone 


Character  of  the  Irish  People.  39 

and  sinew  of  Ireland  is  in  America  ;  therefore,  the  hope  and  the 
heart  of  Ireland  is  with  you  here.  These  hopes  are  built  upon 
your  virtues,  upon  your  sobriety,  your  temperance,  and  your 
self-respect.  Ireland  hopes  that  her  children  will  become  a 
power  in  this  land ;  and  if  Irishmen  in  this  land  are  only  faith- 
ful to  all  that  God  gave  them  in  their  religion,  and  to  all  that 
he  gave  them  by  nature,  the  Irish-American  will  always  take 
part  in  the  political  action  of  America  ;  and,  as  long  as  the  polit- 
ical action  of  America  says  to  England :  "  Let  Ireland  alone  ; 
oppress  no  longer  that  land,"  so  long  will  the  poor  old 
mother  be  protected  by  her  strong  sons ;  for  if  America  should 
raise  her  little  finger  England  would  stop  the  work  of  oppres- 
sion, and  she  would  think  twice  before  she  provoked  the  mighty 
right  arm  of  the  young  Republic  to  dash  her  to  the  ground. 
And  in  fulfilling  the  hopes  of  your  holy  Church  and  of  your 
mother-land,  there  is  another  reward  that  will  be  before  you, 
which  you  can  clutch — and  I  hold  it  ought  to  be  the  ambition  of 
every  Irishman  in  America  to  seize  that  reward  —  namely, 
that  you  will  have  the  esteem,  the  respect,  and  the  good-will  of 
the  native-born  citizens  of  America.  I  know  that  the  American 
citizen  of  to-day,  like  all  other  men,  has  his  faults ;  but 
I  have  been  in  the  country  for  some  months,  looking  at  things 
with  an  unprejudiced  eye,  although  I  landed  full  of  preju- 
dice and  suspicion,  and  I  hold  at  this  moment,  as  an  Irish- 
man and  a  priest,  that  if  there  is  a  man  on  the  face  of  the 
earth  whose  good-will  and  esteem  I  would  value  and  try  to 
have,  it  would  be  the  good-will  and  esteem  of  the  ordinary 
American  citizen.  And  thus,  enjoying  the  same  liberty  as  the 
citizens  of  your  adopted  country,  you  will  have  full  play  to  de- 
velop yourselves  ;  and  all  that  Catholicity  made  you  in  Ireland 
will  it  make  you,  and  more,  in  this  fair,  beautiful,  and  free  land  of 
America,  and  you  will  be  able  to  vindicate  your  religion,  your 
nationality  and  your  country,  and  build  up  the  hopes  that  God 
and  man  have  in  you,  as  sons  of  Irish  martyrs  and  Irish  heroes. 


THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  AND  THE 

THREE   GREAT   EVILS  OF  SO- 
CIETY. 

[A  lecture  nearly  identical  with  this  appeared  in  the  first  volume,  but  as  it  has  been 
in  great  part  re-written,  it  is  inserted  here.] 


?^ADIES  AND  Gentlemen:   The  subject  on  which  I 
propose  to  address  you  this  evening  is  the  most  im- 
portant that  could  occupy  your  mind  or  mine,  viz. : 
"  What  are  the  great  wants  of  society  in  our  age,  and 
how  are  we  to  meet  them  ?  " 

The  first  great  question  that  comes  before  every  age  and 
every  class  of  society  is  :  How  are  we  to  meet  the  most  press- 
ing wants  of  our  people  ?  Now,  what  are  the  wants  of  society 
in  this,  our  day,  and  how  are  we  to  meet  them  ?  That  is  the 
great  question  that  I  am  come  to  answer  to  you  this  evening. 
What  are  the  wants  of  society  in  this,  our  present  day  ?  I  ask 
the  philosopher  ;  I  ask  the  statesman  ;  I  ask  the  political  econ- 
omist ;  I  ask  the  observer  of  men  ;  I  ask  the  director  of  morals  ; 
I  ask  the  man  who  exults  over  the  success,  and  pines  and  groans 
over  the  sorrows,  of  society.  What  are  the  wants  of  our  day, 
and  how  are  we  to  meet  them?  I  hold — and,  I  think,  you  will 
agree  with  me — that  it  is  not  this  little,  miserable  thing,  or  that, 
that  ought  to  occupy  our  attention  when  we  ask  ourselves  the 
mighty  question  :  "  What  are  the  wants  of  our  age  ?  "  To  be 
sure,  if  you  ask  an  individual  man  what  are  the  wants  of  his  age, 
he  will  narrow  them  by  the  compass  of  his  own  understanding, 
and  of  his  own  circle.  I  remember  once  asking  a  shoemaker  in 
Ireland  what  he  considered  the  wants  of  the  age ;  and  he 
scratched  the  back  of  his  head,  and  said :  "  I  think  the  great 
want  of  our  age  is  to  remove  the  tax  on  leather."  Now,  it  is 
not  in  this  spirit  that  we  come  together  this  evening.  I  know  that 
I  have  the  honor  to  address,  not  only  my  fellow-Catholics — (and 
many  amongst  them  are  my  fellow-countrymen) — but  that  I 


The  Catholic  Churchy  etc.  41 

have  also  the  honor,  this  evening,  to  address  a  great  many 
Protestant  gentlemen  and  ladies.  And,  therefore,  before  such 
a  distinguished  assembly,  I  must  rise  to  the  dignity  of  the  occa- 
sion, and  I  must  endeavor  to  meet  their  views,  as  well  as  to  ex- 
press my  own,  in  answering  the  question :  "  What  are  the  wants 
of  our  age?  " 

Well,  my  friends,  in  order  to  answer  that  question  properly, 
I  must  ask  you  to  remember  that  we  all  have  three  great  rela- 
tions. The  first  of  these  is  our  relation  to  God ;  the  second 
is  our  relation  to  our  family  and  ourselves — to  the  little  world 
that  surrounds  us  ;  and  the  third  is  our  relation  to  the  great 
world  around  us,  that  constitutes  the  state  and  the  society  in 
which  we  live.  These  are  the  three  great  relations  of  every 
age,  and  constitute  its  principal  duties.  Every  age  and  every 
condition  of  the  society  of  man  demands,  first  of  all,  the  tribute 
to  God  that  belongs  to  God.  Next  to  God  in  sacredness,  in 
necessity,  in  claim  upon  us,  comes  our  family  and  domestic  cir- 
cle. Thirdly,  comes  the  claim  that  the  society  in  which  we  live 
makes  upon  us ;  and  any  man  that  acquits  himself  properly  of 
all  duty  that  he  owes  to  God  above  him,  to  his  family  around 
him,  and  to  the  state  and  society  in  which  he  lives,  that  man 
may  be  said,  truly  and  emphatically,  to  come  up  to  all  the  wants 
of  the  age,  and  all  the  demands  that  God  and  man  make  upon  him. 
If,  therefore,  you  would  know,  my  friends,  what  are  the  wants  of 
our  age,  I  ask  you  to  reflect  what  is  the  first  demand  of  God? 
What  is  the  first  demand  of  the  family  ?  What  is  the  first  demand 
of  society  ?  You  will  find  that  the  very  first  thing  the  Almighty 
God  asks  of  us  is  Faith :  the  tribute  of  our  intelligence.  The 
very  first  thing  that  the  family — the  wife  and  the  children — ask 
of  every  man,  is  purity  and  fidelity ;  and  the  great  demand  that 
society  makes  upon  every  man  is  the  demand  for  honesty,  honor, 
firmness  of  purpose  ;  honesty  in  his  dealings  with  his  fellow-man  ; 
in  all  commercial  relations  with  society  ;  in  all  his  administra- 
tive capacity.  Behold,  now,  these  three  great  wants  of  our  age. 
That  is  to  say,  our  age  is  wanting  in  these  three ;  they  do 
not  exist ;  there  is  not  supply  sufficient  to  meet  the  de- 
mand. You  know  that  the  markets  are  always  thrown  out  of 
gear,  and  there  is  confusion  in  the  commercial  world,  whenever 
demand  and  supply  don't  meet  each  other.  For  instance  :  If 
there  is  an  extraordinary  demand  for  meat,  and  the  butchers  are 


42  The  Catholic  Church  and  the 

not  able  to  meet  it,  why,  all  the  people  are  thrown  into  con- 
fusion. Prices  are  raised  ;  there  is  a  rush  upon  the  market.  If, 
again,  there  is  a  great  demand  for  gold,  such  that  the  banks  are 
not  able  to  meet  it,  then  there  is  a  rush  of  people  on  the  banks, 
and  you  find  them  smothering  each  other  in  their  maddened 
endeavors  to  get  their  orders  paid,  and  their  notes  cashed.  At 
length  there  comes  a  crash.  The  bank  is  unable  to  meet  the  un- 
usual demands,  people  are  aroused,  and  they  are  told  there  is  no 
more  money !  And  so  with  supply  and  demand  in  everything. 
Wherever  there  is  not  a  supply  there  is  confusion.  So  it  is  with 
this  world  of  ours.  The  world  demands  three  articles  :  Faith, 
Purity,  and  Honesty.  You  will  pardon  me  if  I  say  to  you,  as  an 
observer  of  my  fellow-men,  we  do  not  meet  the  demand ;  we 
have  not  sufficient  supply.  We  have  not  sufficient  supply  of 
faith.  What  does  faith  mean  ?  It  means  two  things,  my  friends. 
Every  man  who  wishes  to  analyze  what  faith  means,  will  find 
that  it  means  two  things,  viz.,  first,  certain  knowledge — absolute 
certainty  of  knowledge  ;  secondly,  the  practical  knowledge  that 
influences  the  lives  of  men.  There  are  two  kinds  of  knowledge. 
There  is  a  knowledge  that  does  not  contribute  anything  to  the 
sum  of  a  man's  actions.  For  instance,  if  I  solve  a  problem  in 
mathematics — in  geometry,  say — and  I  come  to  a  fair  conclusion, 
and  prove  my  proposition,  what  then  ?  Why,  I  have  gained  a 
point  in  knowledge.  But  that  does  not  influence  my  actions. 
It  does  not  make  me  eat  my  breakfast  with  any  more  appetite. 
It  does  not  induce  me  to  abstain  from  this  thing,  or  that  thing, 
or  anything.  It  does  not  make  me  meet  my  friend  with  more 
good-will.  It  does  not  enable  me  to  pardon  an  outrage.  It 
does  not  enable  me  or  induce  me  to  abstain  from  a  single  sin. 
It  is  mere  intellectual  knowledge.  But  there  is  another  kind 
of  knowledge  which  comes  with  the  power  of  a  precept ;  which 
tells  me,  such  and  such  is  the  case  ;  such  and  such  is  the  fact, 
and  you  are  called  upon  to  act  up  to  it.  Such,  for  instance,  is 
the  knowledge  that  I  have  that  I  must  forgive  the  man  that 
injures  me.  I  go  out  in  the  street  with  that  knowledge,  and  a 
man  insults  me,  and  instead  of  striking  that  man,  or  resenting 
the  insult,  I  quietly  bear  it,  and  pass  on.  The  knowledge  that 
tells  me  that  I  must  love  my  neighbor  as  myself,  and  that  I 
must  not  injure  him  in  person  or  in  property — that  knowledge  is 
in  my  mind,  and  I  go  out  amongst  my  friends.     I   have  an  op- 


Three  Great  Evils  of  Society.  43 

portunity  of  gaining  something  by  injuring  my  fellow-man.  I 
find  that  I  can  step  into  his  place,  that  I  can  get  his  situation  if 
I  only  say,  "  He  is  a  bad  man  ;  I  know  he  is  a  bad  man  ;"  if  I 
only  say  that,  his  employer  will  dismiss  him  and  employ  me. 
But  I  remember  the  principle  of  divine  knowledge  that  is  in  my 
mind :  "  Don't  say  a  word  about  that  man  ;  don't  do  anything 
to  him,  or  say  anything  of  him,  that  you  would  not  have  said  or 
done  to  yourself."  And  so,  I  refrain.  That  is  practical  knowl- 
edge. Now,  my  friends,  faith  means  knowledge,  and  practical 
knowledge  ;  and  this  is  precisely  what  our  age  is  deficient  in. 
Our  age  is  deficient,  first  of  all,  in  knowledge.  Take  away  the 
Catholics  that  live  in  every  land — take  us  away — leave  the  rest 
of  mankind ;  leave  them  under  their  various  denominations, 
Protestant,  and  Methodist,  and  Baptist,  and  Anabaptist,  and 
Quaker,  and  so  on — and  what  knowledge  have  they?  What 
knowledge  have  they  that  rises  to  the  grandeur  and  the  dignity 
of  faith?  God  forbid  that  I  should  conceive  an  insulting  thought, 
or  say  an  insulting  word  of,  or  to,  my  fellow-man.  But  I  ask 
you  to  reflect,  what  knowledge  have  they  ?  They  are  broken 
up  into  a  hundred  congregations  and  a  hundred  sects.  One 
says  one  thing ;  another  says  another.  Take  the  Monday 
edition  of  a  New  York  paper,  and  cast  your  eye  over  the  reports 
of  the  various  sermons  of  the  preceding  day.  You  will  find  one 
religious  teacher  questioning  the  immortality  of  the  soul ;  an- 
other denying  the  inspiration  of  the  holy  Scriptures ,  another 
refusing  to  accept  the  truth  of  the  divinity  of  our  Lord  ;  an- 
other reviling  baptismal  regeneration  ;  another  assailing  the 
Most  Holy  Trinity;  and  an  evening  lecture  or  two,  probably 
by  ladies,  advocating  and  preaching  impurity  and  licentious- 
ness under  the  name  of  free  love.  Each  one  contradicting  the 
other,  and  all  alike  appealing  to  the  Scriptures  to  prove  and 
sustain  their  respective  errors.  And  why?  Because  the  Scrip- 
tures, though  they  are  the  inspired  word  of  God,  do  not  tell 
one  thing  to  all  men.  They  tell  you  what  you  like  to  get 
from  them  ;  they  tell  you  what  your  opinion  is,  and  what  you 
would  like  it  to  be,  and  they  tell  me  mine.  So  that  there  are, 
practically,  many  Scriptures  instead  of  one — yours,  and  yours, 
and  yours.  And  then,  if  you  say  to  any  one  of  these  men, 
"Are  you  perfectly  sure  that  you  are  right?"  "Oh,  yes!" 
"  Are  you  sure,  now,  so  that  you  are  beyond    all    possibility 


44  The  Catholic  Church  and  the 

of  making  a  mistake  ?  "  "  Certainly  ;  perfectly  sure."  "  Then 
you  are  infallible  !  Why,  then,  you  are  a  pope !  What  right 
have  you  to  complain  of  the  Catholics  when  they  say  the  Pope 
is  infallible?  Can  you  be  mistaken,  or  can  you  not?"  If  they 
say  they  can,  then  I  turn  away  at  once,  and  say,  "  My  friend,  I 
have  nothing  to  say  to  you.  If  you  can  be  mistaken  on  this 
question  of  religion  I  want  to  have  not  another  word  to  say  to 
you  ;  because,  if  you  are  mistaken,  you  might  lead  me  into  a 
mistake  too ;  but  if  you  are  not  mistaken,  and  if  you  cannot 
be  mistaken,  then  you  are  an  infallible  man."  Now,  show  me 
the  promise  that  made  you  infallible  !  If  you  practically  claim 
for  yourself  this  privilege,  why,  in  the  name  of  heaven, 
say  that  we,  Catholics,  are  idolaters,  because  we  say  that 
the  Head  of  the  Church,  the  man  who  succeeded  St.  Peter, 
the  man  to  whom,  through  St.  Peter,  Christ  our  Lord  said, 
"  Confirm  thy  brethren  " — because  we  say  that  man  is  infallible, 
because  he  guides  and  informs  the  Church  ?  You  say  he  is  not  ; 
you  say  the  Church  is  not  infallible — but  you  are  !  Now,  my 
friend,  I  don't  believe  you  !  It  would  be  something  like  the  fool 
we  read  of  !  There  was  a  fool  in  the  county  of  Galway  in  '98 — 
the  "  year  of  the  troubles,"  and  General  Merrick  went  down  to 
Galway  and  commanded  the  troops.  They  were  hanging  the 
people  then.  The  fool  saw  the  general  ride  up  with  his  cocked 
hat,  and  the  white  feather  in  it,  at  the  head  of  his  troops.  The 
fool  made  a  cocked  hat  for  himself,  and  put  a  white  feather  in 
it.  Then  he  walked  round  the  town  and  said  he  was  General 
Merrick.  So  it  is  with  every  man  of  these.  He  says  the 
Pope  has  no  right  to  be  infallible.  The  Catholic  Church  has  no 
right  to  be  infallible.  Then  he  puts  on  his  cocked  hat,  and 
says  :  But  /  am  infallible !  If  you  believe  the  Pope  you  are  a 
fool  !  If  you  believe  the  Catholic  Church  you  are  a  fool  !  But  if 
you  don't  believe  me  you  will  be  damned  !  Now,  it  comes  to  this, 
or  it  comes  to  nothing  at  all.  In  the  matter  of  faith,  "  without 
which  it  is  impossible  to  please  God,"  I  cannot  accept  the  word 
of  any  teacher  who  may  by  possibility  lead  me  into  error, 
because  that  which  is  false  cannot  be  the  subject  matter  of 
faith.  "  Faith,"  says  the  apostle,  "comes  by  hearing."  The 
voice  that  comes  to  my  hearing,  to  command  and  create  faith 
in  me,  must  be  the  voice  of  an  infallible  authority.  The  word 
of  God  alone  can  create  faith,  and  if  that  word  can  by  any  pos- 


Three  Great  Evils  of  Society.  45 

sibility  be  mixed  up  with  error,  which  is  the  word  of  the  devil, 
the  father  of  Hes,  then  there  is  an  end  of  faith.  Well  now,  my 
friend,  recollect  for  a  moment.  Not  one  voice  outside  the 
Catholic  Church  pretends  to  lay  claim  to  infallible  knowledge, 
but  only  to  opinion.  Each  one  says:  "Well,  that  is  my  opin- 
ion." But  I  answer:  "Opinion  is  not  faith.  Faith  is  know- 
ledge ;  Faith  is  certain  knowledge.  Faith  means  not  only 
strength  of  opinion  and  power  of  conviction,  but  Faith  means 
to  know — to  know  the  thing  as  clearly  and  as  plainly  as  we  know 
our  own  existence.  That  is  faith,  and  that  alone.  For  our 
Lord  did  not  say  ;  I  will  send  you  inquiring  about  the  truth  ; 
I  will  send  you  to  form  your  opinions  about  what  is  the  truth ; 
I  will  send  you  to  argue  out  convictions  about  the  truth ; 
but  I  am  come  to  give  you  the  truth.  I  am  the  truth ;  you 
shall  know  the  truth  ;  and  the  truth  shall  make  you  free."  You 
shall  know  the  truth  !  You  shall  have  a  knowledge  of  it  as  cer- 
tain, and  more  certain  and  strong  than  of  your  own  existence. 
More  than  this :  Faith  is  a  knowledge  of  a  practical  kind.  It 
tells  us  not  only  what  we  are  to  believe,  but  it  tells  us,  also, 
what  we  are  to  do.  It  is  all  very  well  for  a  man  to  believe  this, 
that,  and  the  other  point  of  Scripture.  As  for  instance :  all 
men  believe  in  the  existence  of  God.  All  men  believe  in  the 
divinity  of  our  divine  Lord, — with  a  few  exceptions.  All  men, 
with  the  same  few  exceptions,  believe  that  He,  coming  down 
from  heaven,  came  down  to  redeem  and  save  us.  But  in  those 
sermons  that  you  read,  delivered  outside  the  Catholic  Church, 
you  will  always  find  that  they  are  beating  about  some  point  of 
speculative  doctrine  about  the  divinity  of  our  Lord  ;  the  atone- 
ment of  the  Son  of  God  ;  the  wonderful  condescension  of  God 
becoming  man.  But  how  rarely  do  they  speak  about  the  specific 
duties  of  man  ?  How  rarely  do  they  tell  their  people  "  You  must 
do  this,  or  you  must  avoid  that."  The  moment  you  enter  the 
Catholic  Church,  that  moment  do  you  find  yourself  face  to  face 
with  a  long  list  of  duties  that  belong  to  you  personally.  The 
Catholic  Church  lays  hold  of  you  and  says  :  "  See  here,  my 
friend  ;  you  must  go  to  confession  ;  you  must  purify  your  con- 
science ;  you  must  pray,  morning  and  evening;  you  must  go  to 
Mass  ;  you  must  frequent  the  sacraments ;  you  must  receive 
Holy  Communion,  and  receive  it  worthily ;  you  must  fast  on 
such  and  such  days ;  you  must  make  restitution  if  you  have 


46  The  Catholic  Church  and  the 

wronged  any  one,"  and  so  on.  There  is  a  whole  list  of  practical 
duties,  which  is  the  very  first  thing  that  we  meet  when  we  come 
into  the  Catholic  Church.  The  reason  of  this  is,  that  in  the  Catho- 
lic Church  faith  ceases  to  be  a  sentiment,  or  a  mere  act  of  devo- 
tion— a  mere  uplifting  of  the  mind  to  God.  It  is  this,  all  this, 
and  more.  It  brings  with  it  an  immense  list  of  personal  duties, 
necessary  for  the  sanctifying  of  every  man.  Now,  I  ask  you,  is 
not  this  faith,  certain  in  its  knowledge,  and  operative  or  practical 
in  its  results — is  it  not  the  great  want  of  our  age?  What  is  the 
cry  that  we  hear,  nowadays,  outside  the  Catholic  Church?  The 
cry  is  :  "  Oh,  the  number  of  men  that  are  infidels  !  The  number 
of  men  that  never  go  to  church  at  all !  The  number  of  men 
that  scarcely  believe  anything !  "  We  find  so  many  of  them 
saying:  "  Oh,  I  don't  care  for  going  to  church,  because  I  don't 
like  the  preacher  !  I  don't  care  about  the  sermons  !  I  don't  go 
to  church,  because  there's  no  excitement."  Another  will  say  : 
"  I  don't  go  to  church  because  it  is  the  pleasantest  hour  of  the 
Sunday,  and  I  like  to  take  a  walk  in  the  fresh  air."  Another 
one  will  say :  "  Well,  I  have  my  own  notions  ;  I  have  read  for  my- 
self, and  I  think  I  know  more  than  these  men  who  preach  ;  and 
I  don't  go  to  church  because  I  think  I  know  more  than  they!  " 
The  Protestant  faith  so  stands,  practically,  at  this  hour,  that 
there  is  very  little  faith  to  be  found  amongst  the  cultivated  in- 
tellect that  belongs  to  it.  Very  little  faith  !  The  very  founda- 
tions of  Protestant  faith  are  being,  to-day,  uprooted  by  the 
hands  of  Protestant  clergymen.  I  would  not  say  this  if  I  did 
not  know  it.  You  have,  at  this  day,  among  the  very  finest 
writers  in  Europe,  some  Protestant  clergymen,  who  are  sus- 
pected of  infidelity,  from  their  writings.  One  of  them  will  begin 
an  essay  by  saying  it  is  a  very  doubtful  thing  whether  the  Scrip- 
tures are  the  inspired  Word  of  God,  at  all.  Another  will  begin  an 
essay  by  saying:  We  admit  the  antiquity  and  authority  of  the 
Scriptures  ;  but  it  only  teaches  a  certain  moral  law.  There  is  noth- 
ing supernatural  in  it — nothing  about  Almighty  God  or  about  his 
revelation  to  be  based  on  it.  Another  will  throw  a  doubt  on  the 
divinity  of  Jesus  Christ.  All  these  things  have  been  mooted. 
All  these  things  have  been  said.  My  Catholic  friends,  you 
don't  know  what  the  Protestant  world  is.  You  don't  know 
what  a  state  of  confusion  there  is  there — there,  where  the  Angli- 
can bishops  in  England  have  cited  Protestant  clergymen  for  infi- 


Three  Great  Evils  of  Society.  47 

delity ;  have  proved  the  infidelity  ;  and  where  the  queen,  by  a 
statute,  told  them  they  were  free  to  exercise  their  functions, 
and  they  were  free  to  teach  the  people.  One  of  the  very  first 
dignitaries  of  the  Church  in  England  to-day — the  dean  of  one 
of  the  very  first  cathedrals — is  a  man  more  than  suspected  of 
an  utter  want  of  belief  in  the  revealed  Word  of  God.  And  yet 
he  is  an  Anglican  clergyman,  high  in  position,  grand  in  his 
position,  grand  in  his  dignity,  and  gets  up  in  his  pulpit  every 
Sunday  to  teach  the  people  the  Gospel — God  bless  the  mark  ! 
What  follows  from  this  want  of  faith  ?  Oh,  my  dear  brethren 
and  friends,  wherever  the  mind  of  man  is  not  thoroughly  con- 
vinced— wherever  man  has  not  the  certainty  of  knowledge— 
wherever  the  whole  intellect  is  not  filled  with  light,  there, 
most  assuredly,  in  that  man's  conduct  and  in  that  man's 
life,  you  will  find  the  works  of  darkness,  and  the  taint  of  infi- 
delity and  impurity.  The  man  who,  intellectually,  from  want 
of  faith,  is  an  infidel  to  his  God — that  man,  certainly,  will  not 
be  faithful  to  that  being  that,  next  to  God,  has  the  deepest,  and 
the  most  solemn,  and  the  most  sacred  claim  upon  him — namely, 
the  wife  of  his  bosom.  From  that  want  of  faith,  from  that  want 
of  the  certain  conviction  of  all  that  faith  teaches  us,  grows  the 
awful  impurity  of  this  age  of  ours.  My  friends,  I  must  call  it 
"  awful  impurity."  I  read  in  the  history  of  the  world  of  great 
sins  in  past  times.  I  read  of  kings  rising  up,  and,  in  the  foul 
desires  of  their  lustful  hearts,  violating  every  law.  But  I  read 
in  those  times  of  the  strong  voice  of  the  Pope  of  Rome,  and 
the  strong  arm  from  the  Vatican  put  out  to  threaten  and  to 
coerce  them,  if  not  into  the  pathways  of  purity,  at  least  into 
those  of  public  decency  and  morality.  I  read,  in  the  past,  of 
great  sins  and  great  sinners ;  but  I  read  also  that  they  excited 
the  indignation  of  society  ;  and  that  the  greatest  sinner  of  them 
all  never  attempted  to  justify  his  sin,  or  to  legalize  it,  or  to  ob- 
tain for  it  the  approbation  of  his  fellow-man,  or  of  the  laws  of 
his  country.  But  we  come  to  this  nineteenth  century,  and 
what  do  we  find  ?  We  find  the  inconstancy  and  the  infidelity 
of  man  legalized,  acknowledged  by  the  State,  in  that  most  in- 
famous, most  unchristian,  most  unholy  law  by  which  a  man  is 
permitted,  by  the  laws  of  the  land,  to  break  the  bond  that  he 
contracted  in  marriage  before  the  altar  of  God,  and  to  divorce  the 
pure,  and  holy,  and  high-minded  wife,  who  was  the  first  mis- 


48  The  Catholic  Church  and  the 

tress  of  his  earliest  love.  I  find  in  this  one  act — the  act  of  di- 
vorce, the  legislation  severing  the  bond  that  God  has  made — 
the  legislation  that  tells  the  woman,  no  matter  how  pure  she 
be,  no  matter  how  holy  she  be,  that  she  is  never  secure  in  her 
position,  that  she  is  never  safe  from  some  base  conspiracy,  orig- 
inating in  the  depravity  of  her  husband,  anxious  to  be  rid  of  her, 
anxious  to  shake  off  the  incumbrance  of  her  purity  and  her  vir- 
tue, and  trumping  up  an  accusation  against  her — that  she  is 
never  secure  from  the  insidious  designs  and  diabolical  conspir- 
acy of  that  man  ;  that  she  may  not  be  driven  forth  from  his 
house,  covered  with  ruin,  her  name  dishonored,  her  position 
lost,  and  not  knowing  where  to  turn  in  her  mid-career  of  life  or 
in  her  old  age — the  abandoned,  the  injured,  the  down-trodden 
woman — because  the  State  and  the  laws  have  given  that  man 
power  to  do  it.  I  find,  moreover,  this  demon  of  impurity  not 
only  destroying  the  mother's  hold  upon  her  children,  not  only 
taking  from  the  wife's  brows  that  crown  which  God  set  there, 
who  said  to  her  in  matrimony,  "  Thou  shalt  be  this  man's  queen  ; 
thou  shalt  be  his  partner  ;  'thou  shalt  be  his  equal ;  and  no  hand 
shall  sunder  you  two  until  the  angel  of  death  comes  to  lay  one 
of  you  in  the  tomb ;  "  I  find,  I  say,  beside  this  iniquitous  law 
of  divorce,  that  this  awful  sin  of  impurity,  this  sense  of  a  want 
of  all  responsibility  before  God,  this  feeling  of  perfect  license,  has 
affected  the  young,  has  grown  up  with  their  age,  has  entered  into 
their  blood,  has  made  the  young  boy,  growing  into  manhood, 
think  that  everything  was  lawful  for  him,  until  it  has  become 
the  social  pest  and  the  social  evil  of  our  days.  I  need  not  tell 
you,  nor  lead  you  into  details  about  that  with  which,  unfortu- 
nately, the  press  of  this  country  has  made  us  all  too  familiar. 
The  dreadful  sins  that  now  and  then  turn  up,  creep  out  to  ter- 
rify us,  to  make  every  modest  woman  in  the  land  veil  her  face 
for  shame,  and  every  modest  man  feel  the  blood  rushing  to  his 
brows,  in  shame  and  indignation;  the  murders  that  are  com- 
mitted ;  the  foul,  nameless  crimes  that  are  accumulated  ;  the 
awful  infidelities  that  disgrace  the  world  in  our  day ;  the  dread- 
ful crimes  that,  from  day  to  day,  are  registered  before  our  eyes, 
until  it  has  come  to  this  that  no  man  or  woman  valuing  his  or 
her  soul,  can,  with  safety,  take  up  a  daily  journal ;  for  it  may 
contain  we  know  not  what  abomination ;  nor  do  we  know  what 
abominable  crime  is  to  be  put  straight  before  our  eyes  !    Whence 


Three  Great  Evils  of  Society.  49 


comes  all  this  ?  Was  there  ever  an  age — and  I  don't  believe 
there  ever  was — since  Christ  died  for  man,  in  which  this  dread- 
ful sin  has  so  propagated  itself  as  in  this,  our  day;  this  dread- 
ful sin,  this  sin  that  three  times  called  down  the  avenging  hand 
of  God  upon  man,  and  always  with  a  sweeping  ruin  that  de- 
stroyed a  whole  world,  or  a  whole  nation.  It  was  the  sin  of 
defilement,  or  of  impurity,  that  made  Almighty  God,  in  the  first 
Flood,  draw  back  the  bolts  of  heaven,  and  rain  down  on  man- 
kind that  deluge  of  water  that  washed  away  the  whole  human 
race,  and  destroyed  it.  It  was  the  self-same  sin,  repeated  again, 
that  made  the  same  Almighty  arm  once  more  withdraw  the 
bolts  of  heaven  and  rain  down  upon  Pentapolis,  and  upon  the 
valleys  by  the  Dead  Sea,  a  deluge,  no  longer  of  water,  but  of 
fire.  Living  fire  came  forth,  enkindled  by  the  indignation  of  ai 
God  of  purity,  sweeping  away  great  cities  and  a  whole  nation. 
It  was  that  very  same  sin,  repeated  again,  that  made  the 
Almighty  God  send  forth  that  terrible  chastisement  upon  the- 
whole  nation  of  Benjamin,  when  all  Israel  was  gathered  together 
and  by  God'^  command  went  forth  and  fought  His  battle,  "  and 
all  the  cities  and  villages  of  Benjamin  were  consumed  with  de- 
vouring flames."  So  that  a  whole  tribe  and  a  whole  nation  was 
wiped  out  of  the  Israelites,  because  of  that  detestable,  that 
fearful  sin,  of  which  St.  Paul  speaks  when  he  says :  "  Brethren, 
let  it  not  be  so  much  as  named  among  you  !  "  Well,  this  is  the 
sin  which  to-day  has  assumed  such  proportions  that  it  has  act- 
ually lost  its  shame.  I  say  it  has  lost  its  shame !  I  say  it  in 
the  face  of  a  community  which  has  been  insulted,  as  New  York 
was  insulted  on  last  Good  Friday  evening,  whilst  we  Catholics 
were  weeping  at  the  foot  of  the  Cross;  whilst  we  Catholics, 
knelt  there  with  Mary  Magdalene,  and  Mary,  the  Virgin 
Mother,  and  the  glorious  friend,  St.  John  ;  whilst  we  Catholics 
were  weeping  over  the  feet  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  dead  upon 
the  Cross,  on  last  Good  Friday  evening,  a  woman — a  woman, 
calling  herself  a  modest  woman — had  a  congregation,  an  audi- 
ence, to  hear  her  whilst  she  blasphemed  against  purity,  and  ad- 
vocated the  detestable  principles  of  free  and  indiscriminate 
love  ! 

My  friends,  do  not  imagine,  when  I  speak  thus,  that  I 
mean  the  slightest  reflection  upon  American  society,  or  upon 
American  Protestantism.     Well  do  I  know  that  whatever  is. 

4 


50  The  Catholic  Church  and  the 

vile,  whatever  is  wicked,  whatever  is  unwomanly,  unmaidenly, 
or  impure,  is  as  foreign  to  American  society  as  to  any  in  this 
world.  Well  do  I  know,  that  nowhere  upon  this  earth  is  there 
an  intelligence,  a  mind,  a  heart,  that  rises  against  all  this  with 
more  bitter  indignation  than  the  intelligence,  and  the  mind, 
and  the  heart  of  Protestant  America.  These  things,  and  such 
as  these,  are  a  libel,  not  upon  us  Catholics,  but  equally  on  our 
respected,  high-minded,  pure-minded  Protestant  fellow-men  and 
fellow-women  in  the  land.  And  I  beg  of  you,  therefore,  to  un- 
derstand distinctly,  that  when  I  speak  in  denunciation  of  these 
things,  I  denounce  them,  and  I  denounce  the  badness  of  our 
age,  not  only  to  you  Catholics,  but  to  my  American  Protestant 
fellow-citizens.  And  well  do  I  know  that  whatever  is  bad  or 
vile  that  I  here  denounce  as  a  priest,  in  that  denunciation  I 
•shall  meet  the  sympathy  of  them,  the  American  Protestants, 
jaist  as  lively,  just  as  pure-minded,  just  as  strong  in  their  indig- 
iiiation  as  your  sympathy,  my  Catholic  fellow-citizens. 

The  third  great  want  of  our  age — (I  am  ashamed  to  say  it) — 
is,  as  it  seems  to  me  to  be,  common  honesty.  We  may  con- 
sider this  under  the  head  of  commercial  honesty,  political  hon- 
esty, and  international  honesty.  Is  the  commercial  world  in 
this  our  day,  honest  ?  The  voice  of  the  world  in  the  nineteenth 
century  may  be  said  to  be  the  press,  and  that  voice  answers 
loudly  that  there  is  little  or  no  honesty  in  the  commercial  world. 
The  columns  of  the  daily  press  teem  with  accounts  of  fraudu- 
lent bankrupts,  defalcating  clerks,  adulterated  food,  pernicious 
medicines,  manufactured  wines,  poisonous  liquors,  till  we  grow 
to  wonder  that  a  prudent  man  should  invest  his  money  in  any 
enterprise,  or  an  analytical  chemist  venture  to  taste  food.  We 
have  been  obliged  to  invent  a  dictionary  of  dishonesty.  The 
.adjective  "  bogus,"  the  substantive  "  shoddy,"  the  strange  com- 
pound advertised  as  "genuine  milk,"  the  "confidence  man," 
-the  "  roper ; "  these  are  words  of  which  our  fathers  knew 
not  the  sound,  and  they  designate  the  creations  of  the  commer- 
•cial  nineteenth  century. 

We  pass  to  consider  what  is  called  political  honesty,  and 
what  is  the  record  of  our  public  men  ?  The  press  again  teems 
every  day  with  the  foulest  accusations  of  peculation  and  politi- 
cal corruption.  If  half  what  we  hear  and  read  be  true,  then  a 
political  position  in  America  means  nothing  more  or  less  than  a 


Three  Great  Evils  of  Society.  51 

place  into  which  some  arrant  knave  has  worked  himself  by  the 
basest  means  for  the  basest  purposes.  Time  was  when  the  high 
places  of  the  land  were  reserved  for  genius  adorned  by  disinter- 
estedness, integrity,  truth,  and  every  manly  virtue.  Time  was 
when  the  very  ambition  to  fill  these  places  was  supposed  to  be, 
if  an  infirmity,  still  the  "  infirmity  of  noble  minds,"  and  was 
supposed,  like  "the  maiden  passion  for  a  maid," 

"  Not  only  to  keep  down  the  base  in  man, 
But  teach  high  thoughts  and  amiable  words, 
And  courtliness,  and  the  desire  of  fame, 
And  love  of  truth,  and  all  that  makes  a  man." 

Are  these  the  qualifications  required  to-day?  If  so,  whence 
come  the  daily  accusations  of  public  men,  the  deposition  of 
judges,  the  committees  of  investigation,  the  corrupt  political 
rings,  the  wholesale  swindlings  of  cities  and  States,  the  custom- 
house frauds,  the  lobbyings,  the  carpet-baggers,  the  Credit  Mo- 
biliers,  the  colossal  robberies,  the  secret  influences,  the  personi- 
fication of  voters,  the  extravagant  contracts  and  land  conces- 
sions, and  many  other  such  things  that  seem  to  form  the  pith 
and  substance  of  political  life  and  action  in  this  country.  If 
what  the  newspapers  tell  us  be  true,  then  we  must  conclude 
that  whatever  conscience  may  exist  between  man  and  man  in 
private  and  commercial  relations,  there  exists  no  conscience 
whatever  between  the  politician  and  the  public  which  commits 
its  interests  into  his  hands.  A  republic,  beyond  any  other  form 
of  government,  cannot  exist  without  public  virtue,  and  certainly 
a  stranger  in  the  midst  of  you,  who  reads  the  daily  papers,  is 
forced  to  the  conclusion  that  public  virtue  is  but  an  aroma  of 
the  past,  whose  fragrance  no  longer  hangs  round  the  halls  of 
your  legislatures. 

Finally,  we  have  international  honesty  and  honor.  The  debt 
which  nation  owes  to  nation  irrespective  of  force  or  power.  The 
honesty  which  makes  them  respect  each  other's  rights,  observe 
treaties,  maintain  justice,  and  uphold  the  law.  The  honor 
which  shields  and  protects  the  weak  from  lawless  violence  and 
aggression.  Does  this  international  honesty  or  public  national 
conscience  exist  to-day?  I  answer  emphatically,  no  !  It  has 
perished ;  it  is  amongst  the  lost  memories  and  traditions  of  a 
by-gone  time.  Every  nation  to-day  holds  its  own  by  the  strong 
arm  of  brute  force,  and  uses  its  strength  to  despoil  its  neighbor. 


52  The  Catholic  Church  and  the 

What  right  has  England  to  India  ?  Only  the  right  which 
Clive's  bayonets  gave  her.  What  right  has  Russia  to  Circassia? 
Only  the  right  of  the  sword.  What  right  has  Prussia  to  Schles- 
wig  Holstein  ?  Only  the  right  of  the  cannon.  What  right  has 
Victor  Emanuel  to  Rome  ?  Only  the  right  of  the  strong  robber 
to  his  booty.  These  conquests  are  applauded  by  an  admiring 
world  because  the  very  idea  of  international  honesty  has  per- 
ished. Is  Victor  Emanuel  considered  any  the  worse  because 
he  robbed  his  neighboring  sovereign  ?  On  the  contrary,  he  is 
looked  upon  as  a  great  man  because  he  succeeded.  As  a  foot- 
pad or  highwayman,  with  a  score  of  cut-throats  at  his  back,  he 
would  be  accounted  worthy  of  the  gallows.  But  because  the 
robbery  was  international,  because  the  robber  happened  to  have 
a  crown  on  his  head,  and  numbered  his  banditti,  not  by  tens, 
but  by  tens  of  thousands,  he  is  accounted  an  honorable  man, 
worthy  to  be  visited,  saluted,  shaken  by  the  royal  hand,  which 
is  stained  with  the  blood  of  the  faithful  and  the  brave.  Did 
Bismarck  or  Napoleon  lose  caste  when  it  was  discovered  that 
they  were  plotting  the  partition  of  Belgium,  like  a  couple  of 
sneak  thieves  on  a  large  scale?  Far  from  it.  If  these  rogues  had 
not  fallen  out,  Europe  to-day  would  be  admiring  and  congrat- 
ulating them  on  their  cleverness  and  success,  whilst  the  Belgians 
might  weep  on  unpitied  over  their  liberties  lost  and  country 
dismembered  and  destroyed. 

If  justice,  and  right,  and  international  honesty  still  exist, 
whence  comes  it  to  pass  that  Europe  is  turned  into  one  vast 
camp,  where  six  millions  of  men  are  kept  under  arms,  and  where 
the  entire  manhood  of  each  nation  is  trained  to  the  deadly  work 
of  war.  It  was  objected  to  Edmund  Burke  as  a  statesman  that 
he  was  "  too  fond  of  the  right  to  pursue  the  expedient."  The 
statesmen  and  rulers  of  our  day  are  fettered  by  no  such  predi- 
lection. The  word  right  is  no  longer  found  in  their  vocabulary, 
the  idea  of  right  has  perished  out  of  their  minds  and  policy. 
To-day  that  word  is  spelt  with  an  M. 

Oh,  my  friends,  would  it  not  be  very  pleasant  if  the  servants 
who  live  in  the  house  with  us  were  more  honest  ?  If  we,  our- 
selves, were  more  honest  in  our  dealings  with  our  fellow-men, 
commercially  ?  If  the  nations  were  more  honest,  and  had  a 
little  more  respect  for  each  other's  rights?  If  politicians  were 
a  little  more  honest,  banks  more  secure  and  reliable,  justice 


Three  Great  Evils  of  Society.  53 

more  swift  in  overtaking  the  criminal,  more  evenhanded  in 
administering  the  hiw  ;  life  and  property  more  secure;  our 
butcher,  our  baker,  our  clothier,  our  druggist  more  trustworthy? 
Would  not  all  this  be  very  pleasant  ? 

From  all  this  we  may  gather  that  the  three  great  wants  of 
our  age  are — faith  in  our  relations  to  God,  purity  and  fidelity  in 
our  relations  to  the  family,  and  honesty  in  our  relations  to  our 
fellow-men  and  to  society.  I  say,  the  wants  of  our  age,  because 
not  only  we  cannot  get  on  without  them,  but,  unfortunately, 
they  are  sadly  wanting  and  deficient  in  this  boasted  yet  miser- 
able century  of  ours. 

Now,  the  second  part  of  my  business  this  evening,  here,  is  to 
show  you  that  there  is  only  one  power  upon  this  earth  that  is 
able  to  meet  these  three  wants,  and  supply  them  ;  that  there  is 
only  one  power  on  this  earth  that  is  able  to  remedy  the  three 
great  evils  of  infidelity,  impurity,  and  dishonesty ;  and  she  is 
able  to  do  it  only  because  she  comes  from  God — and  that  power 
is  the  Holy  Roman  Catholic  Church.  She  alone  can  create 
faith ;  and  she  alone  can  create  purity.  She  alone  can  guaran- 
tee honesty.  And,  there,  she  alone  can  meet  the  three  great 
wants  of  this  age  of  ours.  She  alone  can  create  faith.  She 
comes  to  us  in  this  nineteenth  century  and  says  :  "  Hear  my 
voice  and  believe  me  !  "  If  we  ask  her,  "  What  right  have  you 
to  say  this  to  us?"  she  answers  :  "  I  am  the  Church  of  Jesus 
Christ ;  no  other  Church  lays  claims  to  these  my  attributes, 
except  myself."  I  ask  you  to  believe  Him  who  said :  "  He  that 
will  not  hear  the  Church,  let  him  be  as  a  heathen,  or  an  infi- 
del." I  ask  you  to  believe  Him  who  said:  "You  may  rely 
upon  the  Church,  for  I  have  built  My  Church  upon  a  rock,  and 
the  gates  of  hell  shall  never  prevail  against  it."  I  ask  you  to 
believe  my  word,  upon  the  word  of  Him  who  said  :  "  You  may 
rely  upon  the  Church  that  she  can  never  teach  you  a  lie.  For 
I  will  send  my  Spirit  of  Truth  upon  her  to  guide  her  into  all 
truth,  and  to  be  with  her  until  the  end  of  time  ;  and  lo !  I,  my- 
self," said  He,  "am  with  her  all  days,  until  the  consummation 
of  the  world."  Any  man  who  believes  this — who  believes  that 
these  are  the  words  of  the  God  of  Truth — that  man  is  bound,  as 
a  reasonable  individual,  to  bow  down  before  the  Church  and 
say :  "  Speak  !  speak  to  me,  O  messenger  of  God  !  You  have 
proved  by  your  diploma  that  you  have  come  to  me  from  God  ! 


54  The  Catholic  Church  and  the 

No  other  religion  even  puts  in  a  claim  to  this  but  you.     Speak, 
therefore,  you,  and  I  will  hear  your  voice  as  the  voice  of  God !  " 
What  other  religion  claims  it,  I  ask  you?     Does  the  Protestant 
religion   claim  this  authority,  and  say :  "  Hear  me,  for  I  come 
from  God?"     No  ;  the  boast  of  Protestantism  is  that  it  has  re- 
moved that  slavery  of  the  human  intellect  which  bound  man  to 
hear  the  voice  of  the  Church  as  the  voice  of  God.     In  other 
words,  Protestantism  rests  upon  the  principle  that  says  to  every 
man  :  "  You  are  the  best  judge  yourself.    Go  :  look  in  the  Book. 
Put  your  own   interpretation  on   it :  your  private  judgment  is 
the  principle  of  faith."     Theirs  is  no  voice  that  can  say:  "  Hear 
me,  for  I  come  from  God !  "     But   if  these  words  of  Scripture 
be  true,  then,  my  friends,  nothing  remains  for  us  but  to  take 
the  Word  as  it  came  from  the  lips  of  the  Church  of  God ;  and 
that  Word  is  our  faith.     The  Protestant  will  say:  "  Don't  speak 
so,  O  friar !     Don't  speak  so,  thou   old  bigot  of  the  thirteenth 
century !     We  have  long  forgotten  you,  and  your  white  and 
black  habit !     Go  back  to  your  cloister!    Go  back  to  grovel  and 
be  contemned  in  your  monastic  idleness,  and  in  your  monastic 
garb  of  poverty !     We  have  outgrown  you — we  of  the  nineteenth 
century.     We  get  our  faith  from  the  Bible — the  written  Word 
of  God  !  "     But  I  ask  you,  before  you  accept  that  as  the  founda- 
tion of  your  faith,  does  not  that  very  Bible  tell  you  that  faith 
comes,  not  by  reading,  but  by  hearing ;  and  that  hearing  comes 
by  the  Word  of  God,  spoken ;  and  that  the  man  who  speaks 
that  Word  must  be  sent  by  Almighty  God?     "  Faith  comes  by 
hearing,"  says   St.   Paul,    "  and  hearing  by  the  Word  of  God. 
How   shall   they  hear  without  a   preacher,  and   how  shall   any 
man  preach  unless  he  be  sent?"   Therefore,  the  man  that  comes 
to  propagate  faith,  must  come  with  a  living  voice  ;  that  voice 
must  be  the  voice  of  authority ;  and  whilst  he  speaks  to  his  fel- 
low-man, he  must   be  able,  with  his  right  hand,  to  point  to  a 
commission  received  from  God.     Where  is  that  commission  to 
be  found,  save  and  except  in  the  Catholic  Church,  that  goes  up, 
step   by  step,  and   year  by  year,  until   she  says :  "  I  am  here, 
speaking  to  you  to-night  by  the  voice  of  the  least  and  most  un- 
worthy of  my  commissioned  and  sent  children ;  but  I  was  pres- 
ent, on  Easter  morning,  with  Peter  and  St.  John,  when  we  en- 
tered  an  empty  grave,  and  we  heard   from   angels  the  words: 
'  Why  seek  you  the  living  with  the  dead  ?     He  is  risen.     He 


Three  Great  Evils  of  Society.  55 

is  no  longer  here  !  '  "  This  is  the  Catholic  Church.  She  alone 
can  propagate  faith.  She  alone  can  give  knowledge.  The  na- 
tions are  groping  about  like  children,  with  a  film  over  their 
eyes.  They  are  seeking  what  they  are  to  believe :  "  I  believe 
this ;  you  believe  that ;  you  are  wrong,  and  I  am  right."  "  No  ; 
but  I  am  right,  and  you  are  wrong  !  "  And  in  the  midst  of  all 
this,  stands  the  living  voice  ;  the  voice  that  resounded  when  He 
struck  the  key-note — and  that  was  on  the  day  when  He  said : 
"  Go  and  preach  to  all  the  nations ;  teach  them,  with  loving 
care,  all  that  I  have  spoken  to  you.  And  I  am  with  you  all 
days,  even  until  the  consummation  of  the  world  !  " 

Does  the  Catholic  Church  create  purity?     Well,  my  friends, 
this   is  a  subject  on  which   it  is  difficult  to  speak  to  a  mixed 
audience,  such  as   I   have  here  this  evening.     And  yet,  I  feel 
bound    to   speak    plainly   and    clearly  to   you.     The   Catholic 
Church  creates  purity.    In  what  does  purity  consist  ?  My  friends, 
there  are  two  natures  in  man.     There  is  the  nature  of  the  body 
— gross,  material,  corrupt — of  the  slime  of  the  earth.    And  there 
is  the  nature  of  the  soul — spiritual,  God-like,  heavenly — for  it 
comes  from  heaven — from  the  lips  of  God.     These  two  natures 
meet  in  man,  not  as  friends,  but  as  enemies.     They  do  not  join 
hands  and   say,   "  Let  us  work   together  for  the  eternal  pur- 
poses of  Him  who  created  us."     But  the  spirit  says  to  the  flesh, 
"  I  must  subdue  you !  "     And  the  flesh  says  to  the  spirit,  "  No  ; 
but  I  will  drag  you  down  with  me  into  hell  ! "     Thus  it  is  that 
the  two  natures,  the  spiritual  and  the  corporal,  meet  in  man. 
The  soul,  in  this  contest  with  the  body,  has  divine  faith — light, 
example,  and  grace.    The  body  has  its  passions,  its  inclinations, 
its  base  desires.      It  has  what   are    called,  nowadays,    in  the 
blasphemous  jargon  of  the  nineteenth  centur>-,  "  the  necessities 
of  its  nature  !  "    The  virtue  of  purity  is  that  form  of  divine  grace 
by  which  the  soul,  the  spiritual  nature,  the  angelic  element  in 
man,  is  able  to  assert  itself,  to  rise  into  all  the  glory  of  its  im- 
perial  power,  and   to    say    to  that   body,    base   and   vile   and 
earthly  as  it  is,  "No,   you  must  not  govern  me!     You   must 
not  enslave   me  !     You  must   not    have    a   single   desire,    nor 
gratify  a  single  wish,  except  what  I  consent  to  !  "     And  this 
is  purity ;  the  power  of  the  soul  over  the  body,  the  power  of 
the  intelligence  and  of  the  will  over  the  depraved  passions  of 
that  low,  debased,  and    fallen  nature  which  is  in  this  flesh  of 


56  The  Catholic  Church  and  the 

ours.  The  more  perfect  that  purity  rises  into  the  complete 
empire  of  soul  over  body,  the  more  like  does  that  virtue  make 
a  man  unto  Jesus  Christ,  the  God  of  infinite  purity.  The  more 
perfectly  the  body  is  subdued,  the  more  perfectly  all  its  passions 
are  annihilated,  the  more  easily  and  imperiously  all  temptations 
are  swept  out  of  the  way,  so  that  the  soul  may  go  on  in  its 
course  to  God,  the  more  perfect  is  the  purity  of  that  man.  And 
that  highest  form  of  purity  is  called  "  virginal  purity." 

Now,  my  friends,  in  the  designs  of  God,  in  creation,  every- 
thing takes  its  type  from  something  above  itself.  Everything 
looks  to  the  most  perfect  of  its  species.  The  Catholic  Church 
creates  purity  amongst  the  people  because  she  creates  a  perfect 
type  of  purity  in  her  priesthood  and  in  her  sanctuary.  The 
Catholic  Church  says  to  the  people,  "  Oh,  you  men — oh,  you 
husbands — be  faithful,  be  pure,  be  self-restrained  men  !  Look 
at  your  fellow-men  in  the  sanctuary !  Look  at  the  men  who 
minister  unto  me  at  my  altars!  Behold,  I  have  taken  them  in 
the  bloom  of  their  youth,  in  the  strength  of  their  manhood  ;  and 
I  have  enabled  them  so  to  annihilate  their  passions  and  their 
bodies,  that  no  thought,  or  shadow  of  a  thought  to  sin  allied,  is 
ever  allowed  to  linger  in  its  passage  across  their  imagination  ; 
that  no  act  unworthy  of  an  angel  of  God  is  ever  committed  by 
them ;  that  they  are  in  the  flesh,  indeed,  but  exalting  the  spirit 
over  that  flesh ;  and  therefore  it  is  that  I  admit  them  to  my 
most  holy  altar,  because  they  are  complete  victors,  and  the 
embodiments  of  victory,  over  their  passions.  Therefore,"  says 
the  Church,  "  therefore,  O  sons  of  man,  you  cannot  be  pure  in 
yourselves,  seeing  that  they  are  pure  only  in  the  most  perfect 
God."  In  the  purity  of  her  priesthood,  in  the  virginal  purity 
of  her  priest,  and  monk,  and  nun,  the  Church  of  God  proves  to 
the  world  that  this  high  virtue  is  possible  ;  that  it  is  easy  and 
feasible  to  man  ;  and  that  all  that  any  man  has  to  do  is  to  look 
up  to  Jesus  Christ  in  prayer,  and  in  sacrifice,  and  in  humility,  in 
order  to  obtain  that  gift  of  innocence  and  purity  which  is  the 
adornment  of  the  Christian  soul. 

Still  more,  the  Church  of  God,  the  Catholic  Church,  in  her 
system  of  education  ensures  the  virtue  of  purity  in  the  young. 
She  takes  the  little  boy  or  the  little  girl,  with  the  dews  of  their 
baptismal  innocence  upon  them,  before  their  minds  are  open  to 
the  comprehension,  or  their  passions  excited  to  the  enjoyment 


Three  Great  Evils  of  Society.  57 

of  anything  evil.  She  places  them  under  the  care  of  her  pre- 
ceptors— her  Christian  brothers,  her  monks,  her  nuns  ;  she  sur- 
rounds them  with  every  influence  that  breathes  only  of  God,  and 
of  the  Virgin,  and  of  the  Virgin's  Son,  and  of  the  highest  form 
of  purity.  She  teaches  them,  from  their  earliest  infancy,  to  look 
to  our  Divine  Lord,  and  to  His  Virgin  Mother,  and  to  behold  in 
both  of  them,  shining  forth,  the  gift  of  the  infinite  purity  of  God  ; 
and  she  teaches  them  that  this  is  the  highest  form  of  virtue. 
She  infuses  through  the  young  soul  the  sacramental  graces. 
She  brings  the  child  face  to  face  with  the  Lord  God  in  the  Holy 
Communion  ;  and  upon  those  innocent  lips,  that  never  murmured 
a  word  of  evil,  and  into  that  innocent  heart,  that  has  never 
thought  a  thought  unholy,  does  she  place  her  Divine  Lord  in  all 
the  strength,  in  all  the  majesty  of  His  holiness,  to  communicate 
Himself  to  the  little  one,  to  make  that  little  one  even  as  He  was 
in  the  happy  days  when,  in  Nazareth,  He  grew  up  under  Mary's 
hands. 

More,  she  ensures  domestic  holiness,  upon  the  foundation  of 
domestic  purity.  She  tells  the  husband  and  the  wife  that  they 
are  bound  together  by  a  bond  upon  which  the  Church  of  God  has 
set  her  sacramental  seal,  and  that  no  authority  on  earth,  no 
power  on  earth,  no  circumstance  that  may  arise,  can  ever  destroy 
that  bond,  or  separate  that  husband  from  the  wife.  She  tells 
that  man,  that,  no  matter  what  trust  he  may  break,  no  matter 
what  obligation  he  may  be  unfaithful  to,  there  is  one  to  which 
he  must  remain  faithful  to  the  last  hour  of  his  life  ;  and  that  is 
the  obligation  of  pure  love  and  of  undivided  homage  to  the  wife 
of  his  bosom ;  no  matter  what  circumstances  may  come  ;  no 
matter  how  fortune  may  smile  or  frown  ;  "  for  better  or  worse, 
for  richer  or  poorer,  in  sickness  or  in  health,  till  death  do 
them  part ;"  and  whoever  comes  in,  no  matter  what  he  says, 
no  matter  what  he  is,  no  matter  how  powerful  a  king,  no  matter 
how  great  he  may  appear,  the  Church  of  God  says  :  "  Destroy 
me  if  you  can,  shed  my  blood  if  you  will,  but  I  stand  between 
you  and  that  woman  ;  with  all  the  power  of  God,  with  a  bless- 
ing and  with  a  curse,  I  stand  between  you  and  that  woman ; 
and  I  tell  you  your  word  is  null  and  void  ;  she  shall  never 
be  parted  from  her  husband  ;  she  shall  never  lose  his  love,  nor 
his  devotion,  nor  his  homage,  till  death  comes  to  part  them." 
Thus  the  woman  is  secured  in  her  position.     My  friends,  don't 


JS  The  Catholic  Church  and  the 

be  angry  with  me  if  I  say  it ;  consider  if  it  be  true  ;  if  it  be  not 
true,  take  it  as  if  it  were  not  said  ;  but,  if  it  be  true,  consider  it 
well.  Consider  it  well,  oh,  you  ladies  who  are  present,  who 
may  not  be  Catholics — the  only  lady,  the  only  wife,  that  is  per- 
fectly secure,  that  can  rest  quietly  without  a  thought  or  a  fear, 
or  an  anticipation  of  ever  being  disturbed  from  her  sacred  posi- 
tion of  wife  and  of  mother,  is  the  woman  over  whose  marriage 
the  Catholic  Church  has  set  her  sacramental  hand  and  seal.  She 
is  the  only  queen  that  can  never  be  dethroned  ;  the  only  em- 
press from  whose  brow  no  hand  can  pluck  the  honorable 
and  magnificent  crown  of  the  pure  Christian  wife  and  Christian 
mother.  And,  therefore,  I  hold  that  the  Catholic  Church,  in 
her  system  of  education  ;  in  the  example  of  her  priesthood  and 
her  consecrated  ones  ;  in  her  teaching ;  in  her  securing  the  mat- 
rimonial bond  as  the  hand  of  God  binding  two ;  that  in  all  this 
she  has  secured  unto  the  world,  in  addition  to  the  gift  of  faith, 
the  peerless  gift  of  chastity. 

But  what  about  the  public  and  private  honesty?  What  is  she 
able  to  do  here  ?  you  will  ask.  Well,  my  friends,  there  are  two 
ways  of  dealing  with  a  man  in  this  respect.  The  first  is,  to  try 
and  save  a  man  from  being  a  thief  if  you  can  ;  and  if  you  don't 
succeed  in  making  him  honest  get  hold  of  him  as  soon  as  you 
can  afterwards  and  take  from  him  whatever  he  has  unjustly  ac- 
quired. If  you  can  save  him  from  being  a  thief,  so  much  the 
better.  But  the  next  best  thing  is  to  catch  the  thief  and  open 
his  pockets,  take  out  of  them  whatever  was  stolen,  and  give  it 
back  to  the  man  to  whom  it  belongs.  "  Here,  sir,  this  is 
yours.  There  it  is.  This  property  is  yours.  It  was  taken 
out  of  your  house  yesterday.  I  have  the  thief!  "  Now,  there 
is  no  power  that  can  do  this  except  the  Catholic  Church.  First 
of  all,  there  is  no  power  that  can  save  a  man  from  committing  a 
theft,  except  the  power  that  masters  his  conscience,  that  lays 
hold  of  his  conscience.  That  reaches  him.  Now,  mark!  You 
may  sin  against  God.  You  may  do  a  great  many  bad  things. 
If  you  are  penitent  and  sorry,  you  get  absolution.  There  is  an 
end  of  it.  God  Almighty  forgives  you  freely  whatever  you  do 
against  Him.  But,  remember,  if  your  sin  be  against  your  neigh- 
bor; if  you  be  guilty  of  the  slightest  act  of  thievery  or  injustice 
against  your  neighbor,  Almighty  God  will  not  forgive  you  until 
you  have  given  back  what  you  have  stolen.     Almighty  God  will 


Three  Great  Evils  of  Society.  59 

not  forgive  you  unless  you  make  restitution.  If  I,  for  instance, 
offend  God,  and,  in  the  silence  of  my  chamber,  I  beseech  God 
to  pardon  me,  and  I  am  afterwards  sorry,  and  kneel  down  at 
my  confessor's  knee,  make  a  confession,  tell  my  sin,  express  my 
sorrow,  make  my  resolution  that,  with  God's  help,  I  will  never 
do  the  like  again,  the  priest  will  say,  "  You  have  committed  a 
terrible  sin  ;  you  have  blasphemed  God  in  your  anger  ;  you  have 
blasphemed  the  attributes  of  God  ;  you  have  invoked  the  devil 
to  help  you  in  your  anger  or  despair  ;  but  you  are  sorry.  Now, 
with  three  words,"  he  says,  "  I  absolve  thee  in  the  name  of  the 
Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost."  It  was  a  sin  only  against  God, 
of  which  you  were  guilty.  God  forgives  us  freely,  whenever  we 
are  truly  sorry.  But  whenever  an  offense  against  God  in- 
volves also  an  offense  against  our  neighbor,  it  becomes  quite  a 
different  thing,  my  friends.  If,  in  the  same  manner,  I  go  to  con- 
fession, and  say  to  the  priest:  "  Father,  I  was  very  angry  with  a 
man,  and  I  wanted  to  have  revenge  on  him ;  and  I  went  to  his 
employers  and  told  them  the  man  was  a  dishonest  man,  and 
they  discharged  him,  and  he  has  been  out  of  work  now  for  three 
weeks."  The  confessor  will  say:  "Was  it  true  or  false  what 
you  told  them?"  "  Father,  it  was  a  lie!  "  "  And  he  is  three 
weeks  out  of  work  now?"  "Yes."  "  How  much  was  he  earn- 
ing a  week?"  "  Ten  dollars  a  week."  "  My  man,"  the  confes- 
sor will  say,  "  you  will  have  to  give  that  man  thirty  dollars,  and 
you  will  have  to  go  to  his  employers  and  tell  them  that  you  are 
a  liar  ;  that  you  have  slandered  that  man  unjustly."  The  man 
will  say,  perhaps:  "I  cannot  very  well  do  it ;  I  have  only 
twenty  dollars  altogether."  The  priest  will  say :  "  You  must 
do  it,  my  son  ;  if  you  do  not,  I  cannot  give  you  absolution," 
"  But,  Father,  you  cannot  ask  me  to  go  and  make  a  liar  of  my- 
self? "  "  'Tis  no  use,  my  son,"  the  priest  will  answer;  "  for,  as 
you  told  a  lie  on  the  man  before,  you  must  go  and  tell  the 
truth  now.  It  is  not  now  you  will  make  yourself  a  liar  when 
you  go  to  have  him  reinstated.  You  made  yourself  a  liar  when 
you  got  the  man  turned  out ;  but  until  you  get  that  man  rein- 
stated— until  you  get  him  back  in  his  place — until  you  restore 
his  character — until  you  make  up  his  loss,  you  cannot  go  to 
your  Easter  duty;  I  cannot  let  you!"  If,  now,  in  addition 
to  this,  this  man  says  that,  after  getting  his  neighbor  out  of 
employment,  by  saying  he  was  a  thief,   he  met  three  or  four 


6o  The  Catholic  Church  and  the 

others,  and  told  it  to  them,  and  they  spread  the  story  about  the 
neighborhood;  then  the  priest  will  say:  "Well,  my  son,  when 
you  have  paid  the  thirty  dollars,  and  got  the  man  back  into 
his  situation,  there  is  yet  another  thing  you  must  do.  You 
must  go  about  again  among  the  neighbors,  and  tell  them  that 
what  you  said  was  all  a  lie!"  "Why?"  "Because  you  have 
robbed  that  man  of  his  reputation."  This  is  Catholic  duty,  as 
enforced   in  the  confessional ! 

What  is  there  more  likely  to  keep  a  man  honest  than  the  per- 
fect knowledge  that  he  cannot  be  a  thief?  If  a  man  could  say, 
"  I  will  rob  my  employer  of  a  thousand  dollars,  taking  twenty 
at  a  time,  and  he  will  not  miss  it ;  afterwards  I  will  lead  a  good 
life ;  I  will  do  penance  before  God  ;  I  will  become  an  elder  in 
the  church,  and  I,  myself,  will  sometimes  preach  on  Sundays. 
Besides,  nobody  will  miss  it,  and  nobody  will  be  the  worse  for 
it;"  if  a  man  could  say  that,  what  a  strong  temptation  would  it 
not  be  to  take  it?  But  the  Catholic  cannot  do  it.  I  remember, 
since  I  came  to  America,  hearing  of  a  man  who  came  to  a  Cath- 
olic, somewhere  down  South,  and  made  this  proposal :  "  You 
will  vote  for  me,  you  know  ;  and  I  will  vote  for  you,  you  know  ; 
and  we  will  take  that  twelve  hundred  and  divide  it  between 
us."  "Well,"  said  the  other,  "  I  cannot  do  that;  but  I'll  tell 
you  what  I  will  do.  If  you  give  me  the  thousand,  I  will  let 
you  have  the  two  hundred.  For  I  can  tell  you,"  said  he,  "  that 
sooner  or  later  I  must  make  restitution,  because  I  am  a  Catho- 
lic ;  but  you  will  have  the  two  hundred  scot-free.  You  have 
no  restitution  to  make  !  "  Who  is  it  that  catches  the  thief? 
Why,  for  one  thief  the  State  lays  hold  of,  a  thousand  thieves 
escape.  For  every  one  man  the  State  lays  hold  of,  and  brings 
to  trial  for  robbery,  or  corruption,  how  many  are  never  detected, 
or,  if  detected,  elude  justice?  The  money  is  all  gone,  and  all 
the  courts  can  do  is  to  send  the  offender  to  the  penitentiary. 
But  that  will  not  get  back  one  penny  of  the  money.  The  Cath- 
olic Church  alone  lays  hold  of  the  thief;  she  catches  him  in  the 
confessional.  "How  much  did  you  take?"  "Twenty  thou- 
sand." "  Then  you  have  to  give  back  every  penny  of  it."  The 
Catholic  Church  alone  so  lays  hold  of  the  thief  that  it  enables 
those  who  were  plundered  to  get  their  own  again.  Perhaps 
you  say  this  is  never  done !  I  deny  it.  I  say  it  is,  within  my 
own  knowledge.     I  can  say  this,  and  I  have  got  permission  to 


Three  Great  Evils  of  Society,  6l 

say  it ;  it  is  within  my  own  knowledge,  and  was  under  my  own 
agency.  Within  twelve  months  since  I  left  Ireland,  I  paid 
twenty  thousand  pounds  sterling — one  hundred  thousand  dol- 
lars— in  restitution.  Who  catches  the  thief?  Why,  this  is 
well-known  in  England,  and,  I  believe,  in  this  country.  A  great 
many  Protestant  families  have  Catholic  servants,  because  they 
know  they  cannot  steal  from  them.  When  I  was  living  in 
Gloucestershire,  on  the  mission,  there  was  a  Protestant  clergy- 
man came  to  me,  and  he  said  :  "  I  want  you  to  come  to  my 
house" — (he  was  an  Englishman) — "  I  want  you  to  come  to  my 
house.  My  man-servant  has  been  two  months  away  from  con- 
fession, and  I  am  very  uneasy  about  it."  I  said  to  him,  "  Why, 
bless  my  soul !  you  are  a  Protestant  minister,  and  you  repudi- 
ate the  doctrine  of  the  confessional.  Do  you  really  make  your 
servants  go  to  confession  ?  "  "  Of  course  I  do,"  he  said  ;  "  and 
of  course  you  know — ahem — if  I  did  not  make  him  go  to  con- 
fession, how  do  I  know  but  he  might  be  stealing,  you  know  ?  " 
This  is  the  Catholic  Church,  the  reality  of  religion.  I  cannot 
help  feeling  indignant  whenever  I  see  an  unreal  thing,  a  sham, 
held  up  and  called  by  the  name  of  "  religion."  Why,  religion, 
wherever  it  is,  if  it  be  true,  must  get  into  a  man's  soul,  must 
make  him  a  pure  man,  must  make  him  an  honest  man.  It  must 
make  him  an  humble  man,  believing  in  God  with  all  his  heart 
and  soul,  leaning  upon  Christ,  his  Saviour,  with  all  his  heart 
and  soul — not  clinging  to  any  other  name,  or  any  other  power, 
save  that  of  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of  God,  his  Saviour.  But, 
in  clinging  to  Him  by  faith,  he  must  also  approach  Him  with 
pure  hands.  With  pure  hands  !  Oh,  God!  Oh,  God!  to  hear 
them  speak !  speaking  of  "  hanging  on  to  the  Lord ; "  of 
"  grasping  the  Lord  ;  "  of  "  laying  hold  of  the  Saviour,"  and 
their  hands  not  pure  !  Would  the  Virgin's  Son  allow  the  im- 
pure man  to  approach  Him?  No  ;  that  man  is  the  worst  blas- 
phemer who  would  speak  of  Christ  with  impure  lips,  or  speak 
of  touching  Him  unless  his  hands  are  pure.  Religion,  wherever 
it  is,  must  enter  into  man's  life  in  his  relations  with  his  fellow- 
man  ;  must  create  in  him  a  sense,  a  constant  abiding  sense,  of 
his  responsibility  to  God  and  to  his  fellow-man.  Consequently, 
it  must  make  him  "  as  honest  as  the  sun,"  as  we  say  in  Ireland ; 
and  if  it  do  not  do  this,  it  is  no  religion. 

Now,  my  Catholic  friends,  one  word  and  I  have  done,  for  I 


62  The  Catholic  Church  and  the 

greatly  fear  I  have  trespassed  on  your  patience.  The  citizens 
of  America  may  well  say  to  me,  and  to  the  like  of  me,  "  This  is 
all  very  beautiful  in  theory,  but  is  it  so  in  practice,  amongst  your 
people  ?  Are  your  people,  are  you — that  are  always  boasting 
about  being  an  Irishman,  throwing  up  your  hands  about  Ire- 
land, talking  about  Irish  glory,  and  all  that — are  your  fellow- 
countrj'men  in  this  country  the  pure,  honest  men  that  you  speak 
of?  I  answer,  if  they  are  true  Catholics,  they  are  all  that  I  describe 
them  to  be.  I  am  not  describing  bad  Catholics.  But  I  say  to 
every  man  that  speaks  to  me,  either  as  an  Irishman,  or  as  a 
priest;  I  say,  if,  as  Irishmen,  they  are  true  to  their  country's 
traditions,  they  are  all  that  I  describe  them  to  be.  And,  as  a 
Catholic  priest,  I  say,  if  they  are  true  to  their  religion,  they  are 
all,  my  friends,  that  I  describe  them  to  be.  What  remains  ?  What 
remains,  men  of  Ireland — men  of  the  Catholic  Church?  What  re- 
mains, but  for  you  and  me  to  be  what  we  ought  to  be  ?  For  you 
and  me  to  be  what  our  forefathers  before  us  were,  the  cream  of 
the  earth  !  The  light  of  the  world  was  ancient  Ireland!  The  joy 
of  Christendom  was  ancient  Ireland!  The  glory  of  the  Catholic 
Church  was  ancient  Ireland  !  What  remains  but  for  us  to  be 
what  our  fathers  before  us  were  so  faithfully,  in  the  days  of  joy 
or  of  sorrow?  What  remains  for  me  to  be,  but  all  that  the 
Catholic  Church  tells  me  I  ought  to  be,  and  all  that  Ireland's 
history  tells  me  the  monks  and  priests  of  Ireland's  history 
were?  What  remains  for  me  but,  as  a  Catholic,  the  laws  of  my 
Church,  and,  as  an  Irishman,  the  grand  example  of  St.  Colum- 
banus,  St.  Patrick,  and  St.  Kevin  !  And  if  you,  and  I,  and  all 
the  Irish  Catholics  in  this  land  are  only  what  our  religion  com- 
mands us  to  be,  or  supposes  us  to  be,  and,  I  will  add — and 
this  is  the  great  point — enables  us  to  be,  if  we  only  accept  her 
ministration  and  her  sacraments — if  we  are  only  that,  then  shall 
we  be  worthy  of  the  esteem  and  love  of  our  American  fellow- 
citizens.  Why  do  I  speak  of  them?  Because,  Irishmen  and 
Catholics,  whom  I  am  addressing,  let  me  tell  you  that  I  have 
lived  in  many  lands,  and  I  have  known  many  people,  and  I  am 
not  accustomed — (thanks  be  to  God,  and  I  hope  I  never  will 
be) — to  speak  words  of  flattery  or  idle  speech  to  any  people.  I 
speak  the  truth  as  I  feel  it.  I  speak  it  as  it  fits  in  my  mind  be- 
fore the  world.  I  say  to  them,  as  I  am  upon  this  topic,  as  far 
as  my  experience  leads  me,  if  there  be  a  man  upon  this  earth 


Three  Great  Evils  of  Society.  63 

whose  love  and  whose  good-will  I  have  the  ambition  to  possess, 
he  is  an  American  citizen.  If  you  and  I  are  what  our  religion 
and  what  our  history  tells  us  we  ought  to  be,  America  will 
have  no  loss,  but  a  great  gain  in  us.  America,  the  grand 
and  glorious  young  country  that  has  never  yet  violated  the  tra- 
ditions of  her  own  freedom  ;  that  has  never  yet  denied  to  the 
poor  emigrant,  and  to  the  stranger,  and  to  the  hunted  head,  the 
liberty  and  the  share  in  that  liberty  which  she  herself  enjoyed  ! 
To  be  a  citizen  of  America  ;  to  be  destined,  either  in  yourselves 
or  in  your  children  after  you,  to  guide  her  councils,  and  enter 
into  the  halls  of  her  glorious  legislature  ;  to  be  citizens  of 
America — that  is  to  say,  in  a  few  years  to  shape  the  destinies 
of  the  world,  and  give  laws  to  all  the  nations — laws  founded  on 
justice,  on  religion,  and  on  God — this  I  hold  is  the  highest  am- 
bition that  can  enter  into  the  mind  of  man  in  this  nineteenth 
century.  The  country  that  has  given  you  a  home  will  give  you 
power  and  intelligence.  The  nation  that  has  opened  her 
arms  to  receive  you  will  lift  you  up  in  those  strong  arms 
to  the  full  height  and  the  highest  place  ;  for  no  mean,  mis- 
erable, petty  bigotry,  no  tyrannical  restriction  of  race  or 
religion  fetters  the  mind  of  the  free  man  here.  This,  and 
all  this,  will  glorious  America  do  for  us,  if  we.  Catholics  and 
Irishmen,  and  the  sons  of  Irishmen,  are  all  that  Catholicity 
teaches  us  to  be,  and  all  that  our  history  points  out  to  us  in  the 
traditions  of  our  glorious  past.  Great  will  be  America's  ga»ri  in 
the  day  when  the  Irish  element  in  America,  taking  shape  and 
form,  brings  to  bear  upon  her  councils  the  magnificent  intellect 
of  Ireland  ;  bringing  into  her  battle-fields  the  strong,  brave,  and 
stalwart  arms  that  were  never  yet  idle  when  a  blow  was  to  be 
struck  for  freedom.  Great  will  be  America's  gain,  all  this 
secured  to  her  by  Irish  fidelity  and  Irish  love  for  the  land  of 
their  adoption.  Great  will  be  America's  gain  when  her  sanctu- 
aries and  shrines  continue  to  be  adorned — as  they  are  adorned 
to-day — by  that  Irish  priesthood  that  has  come  to  this  land  with 
the  traditions  of  fifteen  hundred  years  of  martyrdom  and  of 
sanctity  about  it.  Great,  indeed,  will  be  this  nation's  future 
history.  I  see  her  as  she  rises  before  me,  magnificent  in  every 
proportion  of  intellectual  and  material  strength  ;  I  see  her  com- 
bining the  best  resources  of  every  land  and  of  every  country. 
In  her  right  arm,  outstretched  in  the  moment  of  her  highest 


64  The  Catholic  Church,  etc. 

power  and  vigor,  I  see  the  energy,  the  might,  the  patriotism, 
and  the  fideHty  of  Ireland.  You  remain,  but  I  will  leave  you  ; 
and,  if  God  gives  me  life,  I  will  yet,  perhaps,  with  tears  of  joy 
in  my  eyes,  see  the  green  hills  of  Innisfail  rise  before  me.  Oh, 
my  friends,  let  me  bring  home  with  me  the  message  to  the  sons 
of  Ireland,  of  the  Clan-na-Gael — from  those  who  love  the  old 
land  to  those  who  love  you  there, — let  me  bring  home  the  con- 
soling message  to  them,  that  Ireland  in  America  is  worthy  of 
its  new  land ;  that  Ireland  in  America  has  not  forgotten  the  old 
land ;  that  the  heart  of  Ireland  beats  throbbing  in  all  the  en- 
ergy of  youth  for  the  glorious  future  that  is  before  it  in  America  ; 
and  still  looks  back  and  beholds  in  the  light  of  memory,  across 
the  waves,  the  ever-loved  and  ever-dear  green  land,  of  the  saints 
and  of  our  sires.  Then,  my  friends,  the  ancient  land  my  home, 
will  look  with  hopeful  eyes  across  the  wild  Atlantic  to  the  great 
continent  that  is  here ;  and  whenever  an  enemy  assails  her, 
whenever  an  old  tyrant  comes  to  hang  an  old  chain  upon  her, 
Ireland  will  rise  up  indignant  in  her  strength,  and  say :  "  Oh 
tyrant !  Oh  oppressor  !  remember  I  have  strong  sons  over  the 
ocean  who  will  strike  a  blow  for  me  !  I  am  not  abandoned,  I 
am  not  all-forsaken,  though  in  my  old  age !  I  am  the  mother 
of  the  strong  race,  the  intellectual  race,  the  powerful  race,  which, 
some  day  or  other,  will  bring  the  mighty  energies  of  the  '  Great 
Country '  to  bear  upon,  to  crush — aye,  and  to  trample  into  the 
dust  the  foul  hand  that  was  ever  raised  to  strike  dear  old  Ire- 
land !  '• 


TEMPERANCE. 


[Lecture  delivered  at  the  Rink,  Newark,  N,  J.,  on  October  23d,  1872.] 

Y  FRIENDS  :  There  is  a  gentleman  amongst  us  who 
has  come  all  the  way  from  England  to  tell  the  Amer- 
ican people  "  What  he  knows  about  Ireland,"  and 
about  her  people  and  their  history.  One  thing  I  can 
tell  the  American  people,  that,  in  tracing  that  history,  even 
with  all  the  prejudices  of  his  race  and  of  his  Protestant  religion, 
he  may  be  able  to  bring  home  to  Ireland  many  an  impulsive, 
ill-considered,  foolish  act  ;  he  may,  perhaps,  prove  us  guilty, 
from  time  to  time,  of  want  of  head  ;  but  I  defy  him,  or  any 
other  man  that  speaks  of  Ireland's  race  or  Ireland's  people,  to 
prove  against  them  a  want  of  heart.  Your  reception  this  even- 
ing of  an  Irish  Catholic  priest,  whose  only  recommendation  to 
you,  whose  only  passport  to-night  amongst  you,  is  that  he  is  a 
Catholic  priest  and  an  Irishman  ;  the  cheer  that  you  gave  me 
would  be  answer  to  any  charge  made  by  him  or  any  other  man, 
if  he  attempted  to  fix  upon  the  Irish  people  the  stain  that  comes 
from  want  of  heart. 

Now,  the  question  which  we  have  come  together  to  consider 
this  evening,  is  the  great  question  of  "  Temperance."  The 
priest,  beyond  all  other  men,  is  supposed  always  to  have  in  his. 
hands  and  upon  his  lips  the  weightiest  arguments  that  can  be 
brought  to  bear  upon  what  is,  after  all,  the  most  important 
question.  The  politician  may  come  before  you,  to  speak  to  you 
of  the  interest  of  the  passing  hour.  The  lecturer  on  science 
may  come  to  reveal  to  you  the  motions  of  the  stars,  or  the 
secrets  of  nature  ;  these,  also,  are  things  of  the  hour.  The  his- 
torian may  come  before  you  to  put  the  panorama  of  the  past, 
in  all  its  glowing  colors,  before  your  eyes  ;  the  past  is  gone  ; 
nothing  remains  of  it  but  its  traditions  and  its  memories.  But 
the  priest,  when  he  rises  to  speak,  has,  for  his  argument  and  for 
his  subject,  the  things  of  eternity — the  immortal  interests  of  the 

5 


66  Temperance. 

soul  of  man,  which  shall  never  pass  away,  so  as  to  be  either  a 
remembrance  in  the  past,  or  a  mere  transitory  thing  in  the 
present ;  and  on  this  great  subject,  all-important  because  of  its 
eternal  interest,  the  priest  preaches  with  arguments  taken  from 
the  highest  authority — from  the  very  mind,  and  heart,  and 
mouth  of  God — drawn  from  the  fountain  of  eternal  truth,  or 
else  drawn  from  the  history  of  mankind,  from  their  experience 
in  the  present,  or  from  the  hopes,  bright  or  dark,  that  they  may 
have  of  the  future. 

Now,  amongst  the  subjects,  all-important  as  they  are,  which 
form  the  burden  of  my  message  to  the  people  of  God — as  a 
messenger  of  God,  commissioned  to  speak  to  them  of  things  ap- 
pertaining to  eternity — there  is  not  one  more  important,  or  in 
its  nature  more  pregnant  with  interest,  in  its  bearing  upon  so- 
ciety and  upon  the  soul  of  man,  than  the  great  virtue  of  which 
I  am  come  here  this  evening  to  speak — the  virtue  of  temperance. 
And  why?  Because,  my  dear  friends,  in  whatever  light  we  look 
upon  man — whether  we  look  upon  him  as  a  citizen  of  the 
State,  whether  we  look  upon  him  as  the  father  of  a  family, 
whether  we  look  upon  him  as  a  Christian  professing  to  believe 
in  God,  to  fear  Him,  and  to  hope  in  Him — the  greatest  curse 
that  can  fall  upon  man  is  the  curse  of  intemperance.  It  is  the 
greatest  curse,  if  we  consider  man  in  his  position  as  a  citizen  of 
the  State  ;  and,  consequently,  it  is  pre-eminently  the  social 
evil.  It  is  the  greatest  curse,  if  we  look  upon  him  in  his  family 
relations  ;  consequently,  it  is  the  domestic  evil.  It  is  the  great- 
est curse,  if  we  look  upon  him  as  one  who  professes  any  fixed 
religion  ;  consequently,  it  is  the  religious  evil.  Behold  the  bur- 
den of  my  argument ;  behold  the  three  points  upon  which  I 
will  put  this  subject  before  you. 

First  of  all,  what  are  the  obligations  of  a  man  as  a  citizen  of 
the  State,  and  as  a  member  of  society  governed  by  laws  ?  His 
first  obligation  is  to  obey  the  laws ;  to  yield  to  them  an  intel- 
lectual, manly  obedience.  To  assert  the  dominion  and  omni- 
potence of  the  law  is  the  very  quintessence  of  freedom  ;  to  up- 
hold his  rights  as  a  citizen,  and  to  maintain  them  within  all 
lawful  and  reasonable  limits ;  to  help  to  preserve  the  State  that 
protects  him  in  life  and  in  property ;  and  to  edify  his  fellow-cit- 
izens by  the  example  of  a  manly,  intellectual  life,  in  obedience 
to  the  law.     Now,  my  friends,  these  are  the  ruling,  the  primary 


Temperance.  6y 

obligations  that   the   State  puts  upon  us.     And,  remark,  that 
next  to  the  religion  that  sets  a  man  right  with  his  God,  and 
keeps  him  right  with  God,  the  highest  blessing  that  God  can 
give  to  him,  is  to  place   him   under  a  free,  liberal,  considerate 
government  or  order  of  State  policy — to  place  him  in  a  State 
where  the  governing  powers  will  pay  so  high  a  tribute  to  the 
intellect  of  every  citizen  as  to  consult  him,  individually,  before 
they  lay  upon  him  the  obligation  of  law.     There  have  been  gov- 
ernments where  the  law  by  which  the  people  were  governed 
was  the  mere  expression  of  a  despot's  or  a  tyrant's  will.     There 
have  been  governments  where  the  law  by  which  citizens  were 
bound,  under  penalty,  was  not  the  reflex  of  high  reason,  ani- 
mated and  guided  by  benevolence,  but  was  rather  the  expres- 
sion of  caprice,  or  the  eccentricity  of,  perhaps,  the  vilest  mon- 
ster and  worst  man  in  the  country.     Such  was  the  government 
and  such  was  the  law  that  told  the  Catholic  parents  of  Ireland 
that  it  was  no  longer  lawful  for  them  to  educate  their  children. 
Such  was  the  government  and  such  was  the'  law  that  told  the 
Catholic  priesthood  of  Ireland  that  it  was  no  longer  lawful  for 
them  to  go  to  the  holy  altar  and  celebrate  Mass.     The  law  was 
not  the  reflex  of  religion,  nor  of  reason,  nor  of  justice,  nor  of 
mercy  ;  it  was  the  accursed  caprice  of  one  of  the  vilest  monsters 
that  ever  appeared  upon  this  earth,  and  her  name  was  Queen 
Elizabeth.     But,  my  friends,  I  come  home  practically,  at  once, 
to  this  subject  of  the  State.     Many  of  you  who  are  here  listen- 
ing to  me  are  Americans,  citizens  by  birth  and  by  blood ;  but, 
surely,  there  are  also  men  listening  to  me  who,  like  myself,  are 
men  of  Celtic  blood  and  of  Irish  birth;  not  English,  but  Irish; 
not  Norman,  but   Celtic.     My  name  of  Burke,  it  is  true,  is  a 
Norman  name ;  but  it  is  a  name  that  has  come  down  to  me 
through  seven  hundred  years,  from   sires  and  grandsires  that 
knew  how  to  bleed  and  to  die  for  Ireland.     Thanks  be  to  God, 
a  man  gets  more  of  his  nature,  of  his  heart;  and  of  his  blood, 
from  his  mother  than  he  does  from  his  father,  and  my  mother 
was  a  McDonough,  from  Connemara — a  stock  that  is  as  purely 
Irish   as  ever  was  that  of  Hugh  O'Neill,  or  Red  Hugh  O'Don- 
nell  ;  as  fiery  in   temper  as  ever  St.  Columbkille  was,  and  he 
was  a  true   Irishman  ;  as  poor  as   England  could  make  them 
(and,  God  knows,  that  was  poor  enough)  ;  as  proud  as  Lucifer ; 
and  as  Catholic  as  St.  Peter. 


68  Temperance. 

Well,  my  friends,  to  you,  especially — to  you  who  have  been 
brought  up  in  the  traditions  of  persecution,  and  I  might  almost 
say,  of  slavery — to  you  who,  in  this  land,  breathe  and  inhale  the 
glorious  air  of  free  America  ;  to  you  who  know  the  springing 
step  of  freemen,  that  you  were  never  able  to  lay  upon  the  sham- 
rock sod  at  home  ;  to  you,  I  say,  that  have  already  realized  the 
magnificent  truth  of  my  assertions — this  glorious  land  of  Amer- 
ica— Oh  !   may  every  blessing  in  the  gift  of  Heaven  come  down 
upon  her  imperial,  and  more  than  imperial,  head  and  heart ! — this 
great  land,  this  noble  constitution  of  freedom,  will  not  impose  a 
law  upon  the  least  of  you,  her  citizens,  until  she  first  asks  that 
man,  by  a  vote  or  not,  whether  that  law  is  to  be  made.     She 
will  not  as  much  as  nominate  a  civil  magistrate  to  rule  you, 
until  she  first  asks  your  opinion.     It  is  for  you  to  decide   who 
shall  be  governor.     She  takes  into  her  grand  republican  coun- 
cils every  citizen  in  the  land  ;    she  educates  him  to  the  highest 
principle  of  obedience  to  the  law,  by  transforming  every  citizen 
into  a  law-maker.      Is  it  not  so?     Was  there   ever,  since  the 
world  was  created,  a  more  magnificent  sight   than    to    see   so 
many   millions  of  freemen    living   in   harmony   and    in    peace 
together,  and  no  man  abusing  the  freedom  that  this  glorious 
country  gives  him.     I  said  no  man  abusing  his  freedom  ;    I  must 
withdraw  that  expression.     There  is  one   man  who  abuses   that 
freedom — one  man  who  is  a  living  reproach  to  the  very  liberty 
that  he  possesses,  and  to  the   State  that  owns  him ;  and  that 
one  man  is  the  drunkard,  that  I  came  here  to  fight  to-night. 
He,  alone,  above  all  other  men,  insults   the  genius  of  liberty 
and  of  law.     He  insults  the  genius  of  liberty  by  his   own   act, 
in  freely  and  willfully  resigning  himself  to  become  the  slave  of 
the  vilest  and  most  tyrannical  passion  that  ever  asserted  itself 
in  the  blood   or  in  the  body  of  man.     There  is  no  man   who 
is  so  thoroughly  enslaved  as  the  unfortunate  drunkard.     There 
is  no  man  who  cannot  resist  his  passions  some  time  or  other, 
but  the  drunkard.     Why?     Because  there  is  no  form  of  sin  that 
excludes  the  counseling  voice  of  reason — there  is  no   form  of 
sin  that  excludes  the  whispers  of  conscience,  except  that  one  sin 
which  destroys  reason,  and  paralyzes  the  conscience,  and  takes 
away  the  soul,  and  leaves  only  the  brutal  body,  with  its  base 
desires,  behind. 

Again,  my  friends,  the  drunkard  not  only  abuses  the  liberty 


Temperance.  69 

that  he  enjoys,  but  he  makes  himself,  by  his  accursed  drunken- 
ness, incapable  of  obeying  or  appreciating,  or  even  of  making  the 
law.  The  word  law — that  is  to  say,  the  rule  that  is  to  govern  a 
whole  community — means  the  expression  of  judgment  and 
reason,  meditated  profoundly,  and  scientifically,  and  practically, 
for  the  public  good.  It  is,  therefore,  an  intellectual  fact,  the 
existence  of  law.  Why  is  it  that  there  is  no  law  amongst  the 
inferior  animals  ?  Because  there  is  no  intellect  amongst  them. 
Why  is  it  that  in  them  a  necessaiy  instinct  takes  the  place  of  in- 
telligent reasoning?  Because  they  have  no  intelligence,  and, 
therefore,  no  appreciation  of  freedom.  Therefore,  that  vice, 
above  all  others,  is  the  enemy  of  God  and  of  law  which  destroys 
reason  in  man  ;  which  annihilates  his  judgment,  and  leaves  him 
incapable  of  thinking,  incapable  of  knowing  what  law  is,  for  he 
is  incapable  of  obeying  that  law.  Above  all,  and  beyond  all 
things,  he  is  incapable  of  defending  it,  wheneveV  that  law,  which 
is  the  palladium  of  liberty,  is  attacked.  What  is  the  conse- 
quence? You  might  as  well  endeavor  to  set  up  a  Republic, 
or  a  Free  State,  amongst  the  hogs  in  Ohio  or  Indiana,  out 
West ;  you  might  as  well  get  these  hogs  together  into  one  of  the 
prairies,  and  say  to  them  :  "  Now,  hogs,  elect  a  president  for 
yourselves  ;  elect  mayors,  elect  congressmen,  elect  senators  ; 
make  your  own  laws ;  it  will  be  hog  law,  but  it  will  be  good 
enough  for  you.  We  leave  you  perfectly  free.  We  have  been 
in  the  habit  of  taking  you  to  Cincinnati,  and  such  places,  and 
killing  you  in  the  fall  season,  or  the  winter  season  ;  but  there 
is  an  end  to  that.  No  man,  for  the  future,  must  touch  even  a 
pig's  tail.  There  is  to  be  no  longer  ham,  nor  bacon,  nor  any 
of  these  things,  for  the  hog  is  a  most  respectable  animal  ;  he 
must  have  his  own  liberty,  and  his  own  empire."  You  might 
just  as  well  say  that,  and  expect  the  hogs  and  cattle  to  compre- 
hend you,  as  to  collect  together  a  nation  of  drunkards,  and  say 
to  them  :  "  We  give  you  your  liberty;  make  your  own  laws," 
They  would  be  as  incapable  of  it  as  the  brute  beast,  that  has 
neither  intellect,  nor  will,  nor  freedom.  And  thus,  out  of  its 
very  nature,  the  sin  of  drunkenness  is  that  by  which  hell,  and 
the  powers  of  hell,  lay  siege  not  only  to  the  soul  of  man,  en- 
shrined within  him  for  heaven,  but  even  to  the  very  human  body, 
that  God  gives  for  the  purposes  of  society  upon  earth,  as  well 
as  for  the  higher  purposes  of  heaven. 


7©  (  Temperance. 

And  have  we  not  melancholy  instances  of  this?  What  has 
destroyed  nations  ?  Drunkenness.  Who  are  the  enemies  of 
the  State,  wherever  they  exist  ?  Drunkards.  Who  have  sap- 
ped the  foundations  of  freedom,  and  made  it  degenerate  into 
tyranny  ?  Drunkards.  When  Rome  was  in  the  very  climax  of 
republican  strength  and  power ;  when  the  last  great  contest 
approached,  and  the  question  was  to  be  decided  whether  the 
Roman  people  were  to  retain  their  precious  republican  liberty, 
won  for  them  by  the  arm  of  a  Brutus,  by  the  valor  of  a  Scipio, 
by  the  virtue  of  a  Cato,  by  the  integrity  of  a  Fabricius,  and  by 
the  genius  and  wisdom  of  a  Cincinnatus  ;  when  it  was  the  ques- 
tion whether  they  should  retain  their  liberty  or  lose  it,  and  bow 
down  their  republican  necks  under  a  yoke  the  most  galling — that 
of  the  Csesarism  or  the  Imperialism  of  ancient  Rome — what 
lost  the  cause?  The  Roman  people  looked  to  one  great  hero 
as  their  champion  ;  the  man  who,  as  a  general — the  man  who, 
as  a  statesman,  stood  pre-eminent ;  the  only  man  who  could  lift 
his  intellectual  brow  and  his  mighty  arm  against  the  schemes  of 
Augustus  Caesar;  that  man  was  Marcus  Antonius.  He  went 
with  his  army  into  Egypt ;  he  gave  himself  up  to  drunkenness, 
and  the  debauchery  that  always  follows  it.  There,  in  Grand 
Cairo,  and  in  Alexandria,  whilst  he  was  drinking  his  wine,  night 
and  day — steeping  his  soul  in  the  lees  of  wine,  until  it  lost  all 
sense  of  its  natural  bravery  and  love  for  republican  freedom — 
Augustus  advanced  upon  him ;  and,  at  the  battle  of  Actium,  it 
only  required  one  sweep  of  Caesar's  sword  to  drive  the  poor,  be- 
sotted, degraded,  and  unmanly  Roman  soldier  from  before  him 
as  a  coward !  What  was  the  beginning  of  the  ruin  of  that  other 
republic,  so  celebrated  in  story — the  rival  of  Rome — imperial 
Carthage  ?  As  long  as  her  people  were  sober,  as  long  as  her 
armies  were  sober,  so  long  the  Roman  soldiers — those  invincible 
legions,  that  had  conquered  the  rest  of  the  world — were  unable 
to  stand  before  the  terrible  arms  of  Hannibal  and  of  his  army. 
He  marched  down  through  Italy ;  he  crossed  the  Alps ;  he  con- 
quered nature  herself;  he  stormed  the  country  ;  and  by  nothing 
but  the  greatness  of  his  own  genius,  and  by  the  bravery  of  his 
men.  No  power  could  resist  them.  Every  city  fell  before  them ; 
until  at  length  these  grand  and  terrible  republican  soldiers  went 
into  winter  quarters  in  a  city  in  the  south  of  Italy,  called  Capua. 
There  they  remained,  during  the  months  of  winter,  drinking  the 


Temperance.  71 

rich  wines  that  grew  upon  the  plains  of  Naples,  by  the  sea-shore, 
and  around  the  base  of  Mount  Vesuvius.  There  they  remained, 
these  men  of  iron  ;  and  no  sooner  did  they  begin  to  drink  than 
their  muscles  and  nerves  began  to  relax ;  their  whole  corporal 
frame,  their  minds  and  bodies,  were  so  shattered,  that  when  they 
came  out  to  fight  the  Roman  again,  the  very  first  Roman  army 
that  met  them  swept  them  from  the  field  as  the  whirlwind 
sweeps  the  chaff  from  the  threshing-floor ;  for  what  was  easier 
for  the  Roman  legions  than  to  crush  and  destroy  an  army  of 
reeling,  besotted,  unmanly  drunkards? 

Go  back  farther  into  history  ;  read  the  history  of  all  the  great 
nations  that  ever  flourished,  and  you  will  find  the  same  story, 
over  and  over  again.  With  the  Medes,  the  Persians,  the  Scythi- 
ans, the  Assyrians,  and  the  Armenians,  always  the  same  story. 
States  fell ;  society  was  ruined  whilst  Baltassar  was  sitting 
with  his  wine  before  him  ;  while  the  proud  Sardanapalus  was 
locked  up  in  his  palace,  drowning  his  senses  in  debauchery.  In 
a  word,  drink  has  been  the  curse  and  ruin  of  whole  nations,  as  his- 
tory asserts ;  ruin  was  invariably  brought  down  upon  them  by 
this  sin,  the  most  detestable  of  all,  the  sin  of  drunkenness. 

How  is  it  in  this  land,  and  how  shall  it  be  ?  Before  America 
lies  a  future  the  most  glorious  that  God  ever  gave  a  people  on 
this  earth.  This  mighty  continent,  terrible  in  its  dimensions, 
a  world  in  itself;  a  country  teeming  with  every  form  of  riches; 
a  soil  the  most  fertile ;  minerals  the  most  rare  and  precious,  yet 
abundant ;  fruits  and  flowers  of  every  form  of  beauty  and  sweet- 
ness ;  nothing,  nothing  can  hinder  America  from  becoming  a 
nation  so  great  that  her  mere  shadow  will  cast  the  rest  of  the 
world  into  the  shade  ;  nothing,  except  that  sin,  if  America  have 
the  misfortune  to  become  a  slave  to  it ;  the  sin  that  will  rob  her 
statesmen  of  their  brains  and  of  their  intellect  ;  the  sin  that  will 
rob  her  senators  of  their  virtue,  and  of  their  manly,  honest  in- 
dependence :  the  sin  that  will  rob  her  people  of  their  industrious 
habits;  the  sin  that  will  rob  her  army  of  its  bravery;  the  sin,  in 
a  word,  that  will  bring  down,  if  America  indulge  in  it  (which 
God  forbid  she  should!) — the  sin  that  will  bring  down  the 
curse  of  division,  the  curse  of  rival  factions — that  shall  crush 
her  to  the  earth  ;  when  this  magnificent  country,  broken  up 
into  twenty  or  thirty  small  States,  weakens  itself  and  breaks 
up  into  many  sovereignties,  that  must  of  necessity  come  when 


72  Temperance. 

the  councils  are  divided  and  weakened  by  the  sin  of  drunken- 
ness. I  believe  that,  if  the  guardian  angel  of  America  could 
make  his  voice  heard  over  the  mighty  land  entrusted  to  him, 
he  would  cry  out,  in  a  tone  of  voice  at  which  the  dead  would 
rise:  "People  of  America,  be  temperate,  and  God  will  do  the 
rest  for  you."  I  don't  mean  to  say  that  faith  is  not  necessary, 
for  it  is.  Catholicity  is  necessary  to  make  America  arrive  at 
the  fullness  of  her  strength  and  power.  Why  ?  Because  relig- 
ious union  is  the  concentration  of  all  union ;  the  highest  in- 
tellectual union,  and  the  secret  of  that  mighty  strength  which 
must  be  hers,  which  must  be  exercised  in  this  land.  And  that 
religious  union  will  only  come  upon  this  land  in  the  day  when 
America  is  Catholic — as  Catholic  as  Ireland  is  to-day.  But 
I  do  hold  and  believe — I  speak  now  from  the  experience  which  I 
had  not  before — my  experience  of  the  American  people,  the 
highest,  and  proudest,  and  happiest  experience  of  my  life — I 
speak  from  experience  when  I  say,  that  if  the  shrewd  intellect  of 
America — the  keen,  lofty,  penetrative,  intuitive  intelligence  of 
America — be  not  spoiled,  and  blunted,  and  destroyed  by  drunk- 
enness, I  anticipate  that  that  intelligence  will  soon  learn  to  ap- 
preciate, and  to  love,  and  to  embrace  the  glorious  religion  of 
the  Holy  Catholic  Church.  In  the  past  there  have  been 
bright  stars,  my  friends,  in  the  firmament  of  America  ;  bright, 
magnificent  stars  ;  men  who,  in  the  very  infancy  of  these 
States,  stood  forth  and  wrote  their  names,  in  characters  that 
shall  never  perish,  upon  the  annals  of  the  world's  history,  as 
statesmen,  as  soldiers,  as  sailors,  as  philosophers,  and  as  poets. 
But,  oh  !  is  it  not  a  sad  truth,  that  some  of  the  brightest 
stars  of  intellect — men  of  magnificent  minds  and  heroic  will — 
that  some  of  the  very  brightest  of  them  were  obscured,  until 
their  light  became  almost  darkness  ?  Why  ?  By  what  sin  ? 
Was  it  by  any  meanness  of  spirit?  Was  it  by  any  un-American 
fault  or  sin  of  lying,  or  of  cowardice?  No  !  But  it  was  by  the 
sin  of  drunkenness.  Some  of  the  brightest  names,  that  surely 
were  intended  by  Almighty  God  to  be  the  lights  of  American 
history,  were  obscured  by  this,  and  lost  to  their  country — lost 
for  the  vast  national  purposes  which  they  might  have  served. 

Now,  my  friends,  our  dear  old  mother-land  was  also — and  is 
— a  nation,  out  of  whose  mind  two  ideas  have  never  perished, 
and  never  will :  namely,  that  she  has  a  right  to  her  freedom  as 


Temperance.  73 

a  nation ;  and  that  she  will  be,  unto  the  day  of  judgment,  a 
Catholic  nation.  Our  history  proves  that  never  did  Ireland, 
even  in  her  darkest  hour,  pull  down  the  "  Green  Flag,"  or  give 
it  up  and  say:  "  I  am  no  longer  a  nation."  Our  history  proves 
that  not  all  the  powers  of  earth,  aided  by  all  the  devils  in  hell, 
could  tear  Ireland's  Catholicity  from  the  heart  of  the  people. 
Irishmen,  hear  me  now,  and  hear  one  who  need  not  tell  you  that 
he  loves  you.  The  master-passion  of  my  heart — after  the  love 
that  I  have  for.  God  and  for  my  religion — is  my  love  for  Ireland. 
There  is  no  brother's  love  to  divide  it,  or  to  interfere  with  it ; 
there  is  no  woman's  love  to  come  in  and  share  it.  No!  My 
native  land,  as  she  was  in  all  the  vicissitudes  of  her  history — 
my  native  land,  as  she  is  to-day,  in  all  her  misery — my  native 
land,  as  she  shall  be  one  day,  when  the  world  shall  proclaim  her 
"a  nation  once  again," — that  is  the  object  of  my  love.  There- 
fore, I  speak  as  a  friend,  as  a  lover,  and  as  an  Irishman,  to  my 
fellow-man.  This  learned  and  no  doubt  honorable  English  gen- 
tleman that  has  come  over,  has  come  to  preach  this  gospel :  "  The 
Irish  have  been  badly  treated  ;  and  they  got  what  they  deserved. 
They  did  not  know  how  to  govern  themselves,  and  it  was  a 
mercy  that  somebody  took  them  in  hand."  The  Herald  news- 
paper made  one  remark  that  struck  me  as  forcible  ;  it  was : 
"  Does  Mr.  Froude  intend  that  the  citizens  of  America  should 
go  back  through  those  dreary,  musty  dissertations  upon  past 
history?  Does  he  intend  that  we  should  go  on,  turning  over 
old  books  with  him  ?  No !  America  has  too  much  to  do." 
Then  it  went  on  to  say :  "  It  is  not  so  much  a  question  of 
the  past,  Mr.  Froude,  as  a  question  of  to-day."  I  now  tell 
you  that,  no  matter  what  argument  this  man  may  use,  the 
strongest  argument  that  he  could  bring  forward  on  the  ques- 
tion of  the  hour,  whilst  he  is  drawing  the  eyes  and  attention 
of  all  America  to  us  Irish, — the  strongest  argument  that  he 
could  bring  against  us  would  be  to  point  to  the  drunkards  and 
say  :  "  There  they  are !  there  are  the  men  that  are  always 
prating  about  their  grievances.  It  is  true,  we  handled  them 
without  gloves,  the  dirty,  debauched,  impoverished,  filthy  drunk- 
ards ;  were  they  ever  deserving  of  anything  better  ? "  Oh  ! 
if  he  is  able  to  say  this,  we  will  have  to  hang  down  our  heads, 
in  shame,  in  this  land,  at  this  sad  spectacle.  But,  as  long  as  he 
tells  about  the  divisions  between  Neil  Garv  O'Nial  and  Red 


74  Temperance. 

Hugh, — when  Neil  Garv  betrayed  him  for  money  ;  as  long  as  he 
tells  us  about  the  division  between  McCarthy  Mor  in  the  south, 
and  O'Donnell  in  the  north ;  as  long  as  he  rakes  up  old  English 
lies,  and  holds  them  up,  and  says  :  Here  is  what  I  read  in  an  old 
book  written  by  Gerald  Barry,  the  Welshman,  that  came  to 
Ireland  in  the  reign  of  King  John,  and  who  was  like  the  Scotch- 
man, of  whom  the  Irishman  said,  he  never  opened  his  mouth 
but  he  put  his  foot  in  it.  This  Gerald  Barry  scarcely  ever 
opened  his  mouth  from  the  day  he  began  to  speak  until  his  last 
moment,  that  he  didn't  tell  a  lie.  The  only  time  that  ever  he 
told  the  truth  was  when  he  said  the  Confiteor,  and  had  come  to 
that  part  where  he  said :  "  I  have  sinned  exceedingly,  in  thought, 
word,  and  deed,  through  my  fault ;  "  so  long  as  this  gentleman 
brings  arguments  from  such  a  customer  as  Gerald  Barrj'',  and 
the  like  of  him,  he  might  as  well  be  "  whistling  jigs  to  a  mile- 
stone," as  trying  to  prejudice  the  great  mind  of  America  against 
her  Irish  citizens,  if  the  American  people  see  in  us  a  sober, 
manly,  temperate,  religious,  industrious,  honest,  and,  I  will  not 
say  a  brave  race,  because  the  Irishman,  drunk  or  sober,  is  brave. 
Aye !  he  may  take  up  the  dirt  and  fling  it  thick  and  heavy. 
The  more  he  attempts  to  lay  on,  the  more  will  America,  great 
and  good  as  she  is,  and  unprejudiced,  the  more  will  she  become 
exasperated,  and  say:  How  dare  you  say  such  things  of  a 
people  who  are  the  very  toilers,  the  bone  and  sinew  of  this 
land  ;  no  less  industrious,  no  less  interested  than  any  others  in 
its  industry  and  in  its  commerce  !  If  I  were  in  Mr.  Froude's 
place,  I  will  tell  you  what  I  would  do.  The  very  evening  that 
I  came  out  to  lecture  and  assail  the  Irish,  I  would  try  to 
get  an  Irishman  drunk,  and  bring  him  on  the  stage  ;  and  then, 
instead  of  talking  and  telling  lies  about  the  Irish  hundreds  of 
years  ago,  all  in  the  world  I  would  do  would  be  to  put  this  fel- 
low on  a  chair  and  tell  the  people  to  look  at  him.  Whenever  I 
see  a  drunken  Irishman  reeling  about  in  the  street,  as  a  priest, 
I  regret  and  weep  for  his  sin ;  but,  as  an  Irishman,  I  could 
almost  take  him  in  my  hands  and  strangle  him  for  disgracing 
so  grand  a  people,  so  honorable  a  race,  so  pure,  heroic,  and 
magnificent  a  history  as  ours. 

And  now,  my  friends,  it  is  not  only  the  evil  of  the  State  that 
I  talk  of,  but  it  is  the  second,  the  domestic  evil.  The  highest 
honor  that  God  gives  to  man,  perhaps,  after  all,  is  the  honor  of 


Temperance.  75 

making  him  the  father  of  a  family.  He  is,  under  God,  the 
creator  of  that  family  that  grows  up  around  him.  He  is  the 
representative  of  the  Supreme  Ruler  of  all  things,  in  the  gov- 
ernment entrusted  to  him  in  his  domestic  circle.  God  Himself 
recognizes  the  dignity  of  his  position  when  He  says,  in  the 
Fourth  Commandment,  to  the  child :  "  Honor  this  man,  rev- 
erence him  ;  worship  him  with  your  love  and  your  veneration. 
So  will  you  honor  him,  in  order  that  your  days  may  be  pro- 
longed in  the  land  you  live  in."  Nothing  is  more  terrific  in  its 
responsibility,  nothing  more  noble  in  its  nature,  nothing  more 
God-like  in  the  dimensions  of  its  power  and  honor,  than  the 
dignity  of  a  father  of  a  family.  He  has  brought  these  children 
into  the  world  ;  and  God  has  conferred  upon  him  the  honor, 
and,  at  the  same  time,  the  responsibility  and  obligation  to  be 
the  father  of  those  children's  souls  as  well  as  of  their  bodies.  The 
little  child  that  leans  upon  his  mother's  bosom,  is  the  father  of 
the  man  that  is  to  be  in  twenty  years*  time.  But  the  soul,  I 
may  say,  can  scarcely  be  said  to  be  born  into  the  better  life  ; 
the  soul  must  not  only  be  born,  it  must  be  brought  up  and 
reared  in  that  infant  child,  by  education.  The  father's  example 
must  go  before  that  child,  even  as  the  angel  of  God  went  before 
the  children  of  Israel  in  the  form  of  a  pillar  of  fire,  a  burning 
and  a  shining  light  of  virtue.  Oh  !  my  friends,  what  a  blessing 
it  is  for  the  grown  man  in  after  life,  to  be  able  to  look  back  to 
the  days  of  his  early  boyhood,  and  say  of  the  old  man  that  is 
in  his  grave :  "  I  never  heard  a  bad  word  from  him.  I  never 
saw  him  in  a  position  unworthy  of  a  man.  I  never  heard  from 
his  lips,  nor  saw  in  his  life,  anything  that  could  teach  me  sin  or 
vice.  His  example,  by  which  my  character  was  formed,  was  as 
that  of  a  saint  of  God — a  perfect  Christian."  This  is  the  highest 
blessing,  perhaps,  God  can  give  to  man  ;  and  this  is  the  precious 
blessing  that  the  drunkard  denies  to  the  children  that  God  gave 
him  in  this  world.  How  do  tJiey  grow  up  ?  They  see  their 
mother  pining  away  "  in  unwomanly  rags;  "  they  see  her  lack- 
lustre eye ;  they  see  the  evidence  of  gloomy  despair  upon  her 
wan,  emaciated  face.  They,  perhaps,  see,  with  fear  and  terror 
in  their  young  hearts,  the  day  when  she,  in  her  despair,  also 
takes  to  drink,  and  becomes  that  most  hideous  thing  on  earth — 
perhaps  the  most  hideous  thing  in  hell — a  drunken  woman ! 
Meantime,  the  father,  losing  his  employment,  losing  the  confi- 


76  Temperance, 

dence  of  those  who  are  around  him,  becomes  a  besotted  drunk- 
ard, and  falls,  step  by  step,  from  one  abyss  of  poverty  to 
another.  The  young  children  are  soon  taught  to  know  this 
world,  perhaps  in  crime  and  in  sin  ;  and  the  message  on  which 
they  are  perpetually  running  is  to  the  gin-shop  or  saloon.  Their 
only  idea  is  to  grow  up  to  the  enjoyment  of  that  which  they  see 
their  parents  enjoying.  I  have  known,  myself,  a  little  boy, 
before  he  was  fourteen  years  of  age,  to  become  a  confirmed,  ir- 
reclaimable drunkard,  because  every  time  that  his  father  sent 
him  to  the  public-house  for  whiskey  or  gin,  the  little  lad  took 
his  share  of  it  before  he  brought  it  home !  What  remains  of 
the  joys  that  ought  to  surround  that  family  at  their  domestic 
hearth  ?  Not  a  vestige  of  tenderness  remains ;  not  a  vestige 
even  of  comfort  remains.  Demoralization  is  there ;  poverty 
comes  in  at  last  in  its  most  hideous  form  ;  and  in  its  train  it 
brings  all  the  vices,  all  the  crimes,  and  all  the  bestiality  which 
are  forced  upon  those  who  have  the  misfortune  to  be  in  that 
last  and  most  degraded  form  of  poverty. 

But  far  more  terrible  still  is  this  vice,  when  we  find  it  in  man 
in  his  third  relation — to  his  God.  I  need  not  dwell  at  any 
great  length  upon  this,  my  friends.  And  why  ?  Because,  at 
other  times,  when  I  have  spoken  to  you  upon  this  subject,  I 
made  this  the  principal  feature  of  my  lecture.  I  have  told  you, 
and  proved  to  you,  the  outrage  that  the  sin  of  drunkenness 
puts  upon  Almighty  God,  spoiling  and  destroying  not  only  the 
supernatural  grace,  but  the  very  natural  image  of  humanity  or 
human  nature  in  man  ;  that  it  wounds  God  by  tying  His  hands, 
and  obliging  Him,  by  force,  to  deny  His  mercy  to  the  drunkard. 
But  there  is  one  feature  of  that  curse,  one  phase  of  drunk- 
enness that  I  wish  to  put  before  you  ;  it  is  the  drunkard's 
death.  We  Catholics  are  taught  to  regard  a  sudden  and  un- 
provided death  as  the  greatest  of  all  curses ;  and  whilst  living 
we  are  taught  to  say  that  most  fervent  of  prayers  :  "  Oh ! 
Almighty  God,  grant  us  a  holy  death  and  a  happy  resurrec- 
tion." Our  prayer  to  the  Virgin  Mother  is,  "  Pray  for  us, 
now,  and  at  the  hour  of  our  death,  oh,  Mary!  "  Nothing  is 
more  terrible  according  to  the  words  of  Scripture  than  the 
death  of  the  sinner — '■'■Mors  peccatorum  pessima'' — the  death 
of  the  sinner  is  the  worst  thing  of  all ;  of  all,  it  is  the  most 
terrible.     Now,  as  a  priest,  I  have  been  attending  death-beds 


Temperance.  yj 

for  the  last  twenty  years.  I  have  seen  death  approach  in  his 
majesty,  in  every  form  that  he  could  assume.  I  have  seen 
him  as  he  came  to  lay  his  icy  hand  upon  the  heart  of  the 
young  man,  and  still  it  into  the  calmness  of  death.  I  have 
seen  him  approach  like  a  gentle  woman  whose  coming  was 
expected,  whose  face  was  wreathed  in  smiles,  who  came  only 
to  take  the  soul,  and,  by  an  easy  transition,  bring  it  into  the 
presence  of  Jesus  Christ  and  leave  it  there.  Such  a  death  have  I 
seen  over  and  over  again  ;  when  the  young  nun  was  dying  in  the 
first  bloom  and  fervor  of  her  religious  life ;  and  when  the  young 
heart  was  breaking  with  the  pain  and  agony,  death  came  as  sooth- 
ingly, and  as  sweetly,  and  as  welcomed  as  the  friend  who  was 
expected  ;  and  she  smiled  in  the  face  of  the  "  grim  conqueror," 
while  she  surrendered  her  soul  to  him,  who,  after  all,  was  but 
an  angel  of  God,  I  have  seen  the  Great  King  making  his  sor- 
rowful advance  to  the  bedside  of  the  dying  man,  when,  oh !  his 
approach  was  the  signal  of  despair  ;  when  the  father  of  a  family, 
reconciled  to  God,  had  made  his  peace  with  all  men,  fortified 
with  a  substantial  hope  for  a  bright  future  in  glory  ;  yet  saw 
around  him  his  wife,  whose  only  support  he  was,  and  his  chil- 
dren, who  now  will  cry  in  vain  for  bread,  when  he  that  broke  it 
for  them  is  gone  into  his  grave  forever  ;  and  he,  their  father, 
seeing  poverty  and  distress  the  only  heritage  that  he  was  leav- 
ing to  those  he  loved  !  Oh  !  how  terrible  were  these  scenes ! 
I  have  seen  death  approach,  like  a  thief  in  the  night,  and  steal 
behind  the  strong  man,  and  simply  lay  his  icy  hand  upon  him, 
and  bear  him  away  without  another  thought.  But  never,  never 
have  I  seen  the  terrible,  grim  conqueror  assume  all  the  horrors 
of  hell,  and  bring  with  him  in  his  train,  before  the  very  eyes  of 
the  sinner  whose  sands  of  life  were  passing  away,  all  the  terrors 
of  that  hell  that  awaited  him — never  have  I  seen  him  approach 
surrounded  by  devils,  except  when  he  came  to  the  bedside  of 
the  drunkard,  dying  in  his  sin  !  Oh !  if  the  greatest  drunkard, 
the  greatest  of  all  slaves  to  this  vice  that  ever  lived  upon  this 
earth,  were  only  to  hear  what  I  have  heard,  and  see  what  I 
have  seen,  that  man  would  never  taste  the  accursed  drink  again, 
even  if  it  was  to  save  his  life  for  a  thousand  years.  I  remember 
being  called  in  to  the  bedside  of  a  man  who  was  dying  from  ex- 
cess of  drinking.  I  went  into  the  room,  indeed,  not  without 
fear.    Four  men  were  holding  him  down  in  the  bed.    It  seemed 


78  Temperance. 

to  him,  in  his  delirious  mind,  that  in  holding  him  down  in  the 
bed,  they  were  sinkinj  him,  inch  by  inch,  into  hell !  He  looked 
around  him  with  his  awful,  terror-stricken  eyes.  He  cried  :  "  I 
am  on  a  bed  of  fire  !  Oh,  God  !  I  burn  !  I  burn  !  the  blood  is 
boiling  in  my  veins '  Devils !  will  you  not  let  me  rise  from 
this  bed  of  torment  and  of  flames  !  Will  nobody  help  me  !  " 
He  went  on,  while  his  great  chest  was  heaving,  as  he  writhed 
like  one  possessed  by  a  thousand  devils,  to  get  away  from  their 
grasp.  He  saw  devils  around  him.  Sinking  on  the  pillow 
where  he  was  lying,  and  endeavoring  to  shake  them  off,  he  said  : 
"  Save  me  !  save  me  ! — there — there  are  seventy-seven  devils  ! 
Oh  !  where  shall  I  fly  from  this  hell  around  me  ! "  Thus  was 
he  when  I  entered  the  room.  His  shrieks  were  terrific  to  hear. 
Truly  the  tone  of  the  despair  of  hell  was  in  his  voice.  I  came 
over  and  laid  my  hand  upon  his  fevered  head.  Keeping  per- 
fectly calm,  I  tried,  if  there  were  any  mesmeric  influence  in  me, 
to  give  peace  to  him.  For  a  moment  he  grew  calm ;  he  knew 
me.  "  Ah  !  Father  Tom,  is  it  you  ?  "  "  Yes  ;  I  am  here." 
"  Tell  me,"  he  said,  "  tell  me,  have  you  the  Blessed  Sac- 
rament ? "  ''Yes,"  I  said,  "I  have  the  Blessed  Sacrament." 
"Oh!  begone,"  he  cried,  "you  and  your  God!  Begone!  He 
is  not  my  God  !  I  will  not  have  Him,  or  belong  to  Him. 
There  are  those  around  me  who  will  take  me  away  forever! 
Begone  !  "  With  these  words  he  heaved  one  mighty  sigh — his 
heart  broke  with  the  excess  of  his  terrible  delirium — and  he  fell 
out  of  the  hands  of  those  who  held  him,  a  corpse — his  last 
breath  a  blasphemy.  Many  a  time  and  oft — for  I  knew  him 
well  and  intimately — many  a  time  and  oft  I  had  said  to  him  :  "  My 
friend,  you  are  every  day  preparing  for  the  curse  that  will  come 
upon  you  with  your  last  hour,  upon  your  death-bed.  You  are 
preparing,  by  a  drunkard's  life,  to  meet  a  drunkard's  death." 
He  did  not  listen  to  me.  That  drunkard's  death  he  died  ;  and 
I  greatly  fear  that  an  eternity  of  sorrow  will  not  be  enough  to 
repair  the  loss  of  his  immortal  soul. 

Are  there  any  amongst  my  hearers  to-night  preparing  for  a 
drunkard's  death  ?  On  my  very  knees  before  that  man,  I  ask 
him — As  you  love  all  that  is  dear  to  you  in  this  world  ;  as  you 
love  all  that  your  heart  ever  leaned*  towards  ;  as  you  love  your 
faith,  your  religion,  your  God  ;  as  you  love  your  country  ;  as 
you  love  the  glorious  country  that  you  are  in ;  for  all  these, 


Temperance.  79 

and  by  reason  of  all  these,  in  the  Name  of  the  Father,  and  of 
the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  take  the  pledge  and  give  up 
the  drink.  If  you  do  not,  the  word  is  written  against  you  in 
the  Book  of  God,  namely:  "  Whatever  a  man  sows,  the  same 
shall  he  reap."  Life  is  the  time  of  sowing ;  life  is  the  spring- 
time of  that  which  will  be  harvested  in  eternity.  What  you  are 
sowing  to-day  you  will  reap  forever,  either  in  Heaven  or  in  hell. 
Oh!  let  it  be  in  Heaven,  my  friends.  It  is  a  friend  that  speaks, 
with  no  interest  save  in  your  temporal  welfare,  and  in  the  sal- 
vation of  your  souls — your  welfare  and  happiness  for  time  and 
eternity;  and,  as  much  of  your  country's  hopes  are  bound  up 
in  your  actions  and  in  your  conduct  in  this  land,  I,  therefore, 
ask  you,  in  the  name  of  God — such  of  you  as  may  require  it, 
such  of  you  as  may  feel  that  you  ought  to  do  it — this  very 
night,  from  this  platform,  to  join  your  voices  with  mine  whilst 
you  take  the  pledge  as  I  will  give  it.  I  ask  you  before  you  do 
this,  to  remember  that  this  pledge  you  will  not  be  able  to  keep, 
as  a  rule,  unless  you  go  to  your  duties  as  Catholics — to  Con- 
fession and  Communion — to  get  from  God,  who  alone  can  give 
it,  the  same  grace  that  enables  such  as  I  am,  priests,  to  keep 
ourselves  from  sin,  from  scandal,  and  the  wicked  vices  of  this 
world.  It  is  all  in  vain  to  think,  as  many  think,  that  when  a 
man  makes  a  resolution  he  will  keep  it.  No !  God  must  keep 
it  for  him.  To  keep  a  good  resolution  is  a  work  of  divine 
grace.  God  has  provided  the  means  for  you — the  graces  that 
will  enable  you  to  keep  this  resolution.  Therefore,  before  I 
speak  one  word  of  this  pledge  to  you,  I  tell  you  it  is  a  resolution, 
not  a  vow.  But  the  virtue  of  a  firm  resolution  is  based  upon 
the  hope  that  we  have  in  God,  that  He  will  enable  us  to  keep 
it;  it  is  based  upon  the  use  of  the  sacraments  and  the  practice 
of  our  religion,  in  order  that  we  may  make  sure  of  the  grace 
that  will  enable  us  to  keep  that  pledge.  And  if,  after  taking 
it,  any  man  amongst  you  will  keep  it ;  if  any  man  who  has 
hitherto  been  led  astray  by  too  much  jollity  or  good  humor,  or 
any  one  of  the  thousand  causes  that  influence  the  soft  and  ♦•he 
simple  heart  of  the  Irishman — for  in  that  heart  there  isn't  much 
that  is  bad,  though  there  may  be  a  great  deal  that  is  foolish — I 
say  now  to  you  that  if  any  man  amongst  you  will  take  this 
pledge  from  me,  three  angels  will  descend  into  that  man's 
house  to-night — the  angel  of  the  Church  of  God,  to  thank  him, 


8o  Temperance. 

to  abide  with  him,  that  he  may  be  an  honor  to  his  religion  ;  the 
angel  of  American  liberty,  to  abide  with  him,  and  make  him  to 
be  ever  worthy  of  that  highest  honor  and  highest  character  on 
earth,  that  of  an  American  citizen  ;  and  the  angel  of  old,  green 
Ireland,  who  will  swoop  with  the  rapidity  of  angelic  motion, 
rapid  as  thought,  over  the  Atlantic  wave,  even  into  that  Irish- 
man's humble  house,  and  will  say  to  him  :  "  I  come  with  a 
message  from  the  land  of  saints  and  martyrs ;  their  blood  has 
not  been  shed  in  vain ;  their  prayers  have  not  been  poured 
forth  in  vain;  their  sufferings  have  not  been  incurred  in  vain. 
If  you  be  a  sober  man  and  keep  this  pledge,  Ireland  will  revive 
in  you  and  in  your  children  in  renewed  prosperity  and  hope ; 
glorious,  powerful,  crowned  with  every  crown  of  highest  bless- 
ings, with  the  still  higher  crown  of  that  faith,  hope,  and  love, 
which  have  been  the  lustre  on  Ireland's  brow  in  all  the  sorrows 
of  the  past."  Now,  if  any  man  here  to-night,  wishes  to  take 
the  pledge  from  me,  let  him  hold  up  his  hand.  In  the  name 
of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  Amen. 
I  ask  you  to  repeat  these  words  with  me :  "  I  promise,  with 
the  divine  assistance,  to  abstain  henceforth  from  all  intoxica- 
ting drinks.  And  may  the  Almighty  God,  through  the  inter- 
cession of  the  Blessed  Virgin,  and  all  the  angels  and  saints, 
give  me  grace  and  strength  to  keep  this  pledge."  A  wise  reso- 
lution. If  you  keep  it,  and  if  you  take  the  proper  means  to 
insure  your  keeping  it,  I  promise  you,  as  far  as  I  can  promise, 
as  a  minister  of  God,  that  the  blessing  of  Father,  Son,  and 
Holy  Ghost  will  be  upon  you  in  your  path  in  life,  that  the 
prayers  of  the  Mother  of  God  will  be  with  you  at  the  hour 
of  your  death,  and  that  your  souls  will  pass  into  a  happy 
eternity,  to  enjoy  the  vision  of  Jesus  Christ  in  His  glory 
forever.     Amen. 


ST.  COLUMBKILLE. 


[Lecture  delivered  in  St.  Columba's  Church,  New  York  City.] 

Y  FRIENDS :  There  are  two  things  necessary  in  order 
to  make  a  saint :  nature  and  grace  must  both  work 
out  the  character  of  the  man.  Those  whom  the  Al- 
mighty God  destines  for  the  high  sanctity  which  the 
Catholic  Church  recognizes  by  canonization,  either  receive 
from  God  in  the  beginning  a  calm,  sweet,  gentle  nature,  or  else, 
if  they  receive  from  God  a  hard,  rigorous,  obstinate  nature, 
they  receive  on  the  other  hand  copious  divine  graces,  whereby 
they  overcome  this  nature  thoroughly,  and  make  themselves 
after  God's  own  nature.  But  whatever  man's  natural  disposition 
be,  whether  it  be  the  amiable,  sweet,  gentle  disposition,  easily, 
unselfishly  yielding  to  others,  or  whether  full  of  character,  full 
of  self-assertion,  full  of  rigor,  full  of  obstinacy ;  whatever  it  be, 
if  that  man  is  destined  to  be  a  holy  man,  a  man  after  God's 
own  heart  and  nature,  there  is  another  thing  that  must  come 
to  him  from  Heaven,  to  aid  the  natural  disposition  which  he 
has  received,  and  that  is  the  mighty  copious  graces  bestowed 
by  the  Almighty  God  on  the  saints  of  the  Catholic  Church. 
The  saints,  of  whom  we  read,  were  men  like  ourselves.  In 
reading  their  lives  nothing  is  more  interesting  than  to  trace 
the  man,  side  by  side  with  the  saint.  They  had  the  same 
passions ;  the  same  difficulties  to  overcome ;  the  same  ene- 
mies ;  the  world  lay  around  them,  the  devil  was  beneath  them, 
and  the  flesh  was  their  very  selves.  But,  arming  for  this  con- 
test, whereby  they  were  to  triumph,  not  only  over  the  world 
around  them,  and  over  the  powers  of  hell  beneath  them,  but  over 
their  own  selves,  they  received  from  God  the  highest,  the  no- 
blest, and  the  most  powerful  graces,  and  by  corresponding  with 
those  graces,  they  elaborated  and  brought  forth  their  own  sanc- 
tity.    Now,  what  follows  from  all  this  ?     My  dear  friends,  it 

6 


82  St.  Columbkille. 

follows  that  there  is  a  natural  and  a  supernatural  side,  even  in 
the  lives  of  the  saints ;  it  follows  that  we  find  the  man  overcom- 
ing himself,  sometimes  yielding  so  far  as  to  bring  out  his  natu- 
ral character,  but  in  the  end  overcoming  himself  by  divine 
grace ;  it  follows  that  the  lives  of  the  saints  are  not  only  most 
instructive  to  us  as  Catholics,  but  that  they  are  also  most  in- 
structive to  the  historian,  or  to  the  antiquarian,  as  subjects  of 
national  character.  Now,  my  friends,  the  world  is  divided  into 
various  nations  and  races  of  people  ;  and  all  these  various  races 
differ  from  one  another  in  the  most  extraordinary  manner.  All 
that  you  have  to  do  is  to  travel  to  see  this.  I  have  traveled  a 
great  deal — all  over  the  continent  of  Europe  I  may  say,  with 
the  exception  of  Russia  and  Turkey,  and  nothing  in  all  these 
countries  struck  me  more  than  the  difference  of  the  various 
races.  For  instance,  I  traveled  in  France,  and  there  I  found  a 
lively,  impulsive,  generous,  and  passionate  people  ;  most  polite, 
most  willing  to  go  out  of  their  road  to  serve  you  in  any  manner. 
Entering  into  a  stage-coach,  or  railway-car,  coming  in  hat  in 
hand,  with  a  "  May  I  be  permitted  to  speak  to  you,  sir?  "  style, 
making  themselves  agreeable  to  you  at  all  times.  Passing 
through  France  into  Germany,  there  I  found  a  people  silent 
and  reserved,  with  perhaps  more  of  the  grandeur  of  manliness 
than  in  France,  but  no  approach  to  anything  like  conversation, 
no  apparent  external  politeness,  though  a  great  deal,  no  doubt, 
of  true  politeness.  In  a  word,  as  different  from  the  neighboring 
country  as  night  from  day.  So,  in  like  manner,  go  to  Ireland  and 
travel  through  it.  Let  a  man  who  is  not  an  Irishman  go  there, 
and  he  finds  a  quick,  bright,  intelligent,  generous,  and  impulsive 
people.  If  he  makes  a  joke,  no  sooner  is  it  out  of  his  lips  than 
the  Irishman  laughs,  and  with  his  ready  laugh  shows  that  he 
appreciates  the  joke ;  if  he  does  not  make  a  joke,  the  simplest 
Irish  peasant  he  meets  on  the  road  will  make  one  for  him.  If 
he  wants  a  drink  of  water,  and  asks  for  it,  the  probability  is, 
that  the  farmer's  wife  will  say  to  him,  "  Don't  be  taking  water  ; 
it  is  bad  for  you.  Take  a  drink  of  milk."  Impulsive  ;  speaking 
without  thinking ;  saying  the  word  first,  and  afterwards  think- 
ing whether  it  was  right  or  wrong  to  say  it ;  perhaps  giving  you 
a  blow  in  the  face,  and  afterwards  thinking  perhaps  you  did 
not  deserve  it.  More  or  less  slip-shod  and  imprudent,  allow- 
ing things  to  take  their  course.     Pass  over  to  England,  and 


Sf.    Coliimbkille.  83 

you  find  a  country  as  different  as  if  you  passed  from  this  world 
into  another  sphere.  Everything  kept  in  its  own  place ;  you 
may  pass  through  the  land  and  there  is  neither  welcome  nor  in- 
sult for  you.  If  you  ask  for  a  drink  of  water,  there  is  very  little 
fear  that  you  will  be  offered  a  drink  of  buttermilk. 

So,  throughout  all  the  world  and  the  nations  of  the  earth, 
each  one  has  its  own  character.  Don't  imagine  that  I  am  abus- 
ing the  Englishman  by  contrasting  him  unfavorably  with  the 
Irishman.  My  friends,  I  am  one  of  your  race ;  but  I  tell  you 
that  the  Englishman  has  qualities  that  are  admirable.  As  a 
rule,  he  is  a  brave  man,  a  self-reliant  man,  a  truthful  man  ;  his 
word  is  his  bond.  Argue  with  him  on  any  point — only  leaving 
Ireland  and  the  Catholic  religion  out  of  the  question — and  you 
will  find  him  a  fair  man  ;  but  the  moment  you  talk  to  him  about 
Catholicity,  or  upon  Ireland,  he  becomes  irrational  and  un- 
just. Now,  why  am  I  making  these  remarks  ?  For  this  pur- 
pose. The  saints  of  the  various  nations  partake  of  the  national 
character.  They  are,  perhaps,  the  very  best  specimens  of  the 
national  character  of  each  nation  of  people.  Whatever  the  nation 
is,  that  you  are  sure  to  find  in  the  natural  side  of  the  saint's 
character  with  this  difference:  there  you  find  the  grace  of  the 
Almighty  God  in  its  highest,  noblest,  and  strongest  form,  act- 
ing upon  the  natural  character  of  the  man,  or,  if  you  will,  upon 
the  national  character  of  the  people,  as  embodied  in  that  man. 
I  am  come  here  this  evening  to  speak  to  you  of  one  of  the 
greatest  saints  in  the  Catholic  Church !  A  man  whose  name  is 
recorded  in  the  annals  of  the  Church  amongst  her  brightest  and 
most  glorious  saints  !  A  man  whose  name  is  known  throughout 
the  whole  world  wherever  a  Catholic  priest  says  his  office,  and 
wherever  a  Catholic  people  hear  the  voice  of  their  pastor. 
There  are  many  saints  in  the  Catholic  Church  of  whom  we  hear 
but  little.  Many  saints,  heroic  Christian  men,  exalted  in  their 
sanctity.  Yet  how  much  do  you  know  about  them  ?  You  are 
Catholics,  and  you  have  scarcely  ever  heard  the  name  of  some  of 
the  great  and  illustrious  saints  :  of  St.  Louis  Bertrand,  a  Domin- 
ican saint  of  my  order,  one  of  the  greatest  evangelists  God  ever 
sent  forth ;  of  St.  Hyacinthe.  But  there  are  names  of  saints 
who  were  so  great  that  the  whole  world  is  familiar  with  them. 
St.  Augustine — we  have  all  heard  of  him ;  St.  Patrick — who 
has  the  most  ardent  devotion  of  the  Irish  race.     His  name  is 


84  St.    Columbkille. 

known  to  the  whole  world,  and  will  be  known  to  the  end  of 
time.  Amongst  these  mighty  saints ;  amongst  the  saints  who 
have  written  their  names  upon  the  history  of  the  world ; 
amongst  those  saints  adopted  by  nations  as  their  patrons, 
whose  names  are  familiar  to  every  hearth  in  the  land  where  civ- 
ilization and  religion  have  extended  themselves,  is  the  name  of 
the  Irish  saint,  COLUMBKILLE,  known  outside  of  Ireland  by  the 
name  Columba,  but  known  amongst  his  own  people  as  "  Columb- 
kille." It  is  of  him  I  have  come  to  speak.  Therefore,  I  speak 
of  the  national  character,  and  the  natural  side  of  the  saint,  as 
embodied  in  him. 

You  all  know,  my  dear  friends,  that  it  is  now  fifteen  hundred 
years  since  St.  Patrick  preached  in  Ireland.  At  that  time  the 
religion  of  Jesus  Christ  was  only  known  in  Italy,  in  Spain,  in 
portions  of  France,  and  throughout  the  East  in  the  primeval 
nations.  The  rest  of  Europe  was  in  darkness.  As  yet  the  voice 
of  the  apostolic  preacher  had  not  been  heard.  The  forests  of 
Germany  still  witnessed  the  rites  and  ceremonies  of  the  ancient 
paganism  in  that  great  land.  The  northern  portions  of  Europe, 
Sweden,  Norway,  and  Russia,  amid  their  snows,  still  heard  the 
voice  of  the  ancient  Scalds,  celebrating  in  their  sagas  pagan 
divinities  of  the  olden  time.  England  was  in  the  deepest  dark- 
ness of  her  Saxon  idolatry.  A  few  of  the  ancient  Britons,  in  the 
mountains  of  Wales,  had  received  the  Catholic  faith,  and  their 
bishops  and  priests  were  ungenerous  enough,  and  weak  enough, 
to  refuse  to  preach  the  Gospel  to  the  Saxons,  because  they  had 
invaded  their  land.  It  was  in  this  almost  universal  mist  and 
darkness  that,  in  the  year  442,  a  man  landed  on  the  shores  of 
Ireland,  and  lifted  up  his  voice  and  proclaimed  the  name  of 
Jesus  Christ,  and  His  Virgin  Mother;  and  the  Irish  race  to-day 
professes  the  same  Catholic  faith  in  all  the  clearness,  in  all  the 
exact  definiteness  of  its  knowledge  ;  and  professes  it  still  more  in 
the  sanctity  of  the  national  priesthood,  and  the  system  of  mo- 
nasticism  as  it  was  given  to  them  from  the  lips  of  St.  Patrick. 
My  dear  friends,  no  matter  what  men  may  say,  I  am  here  as  a 
Catholic,  as  an  Irish  priest,  and  I  defy  any  man  in  the  world  to 
produce  such  a  miraculous  example  of  conversion,  and  of  instant 
maturity  into  fullness  of  love  and  holiness  of  life  as  that  of  the 
Irish  race. 

Now,  St.  Patrick  had  passed  to  his  grave.     More  than  half  a 


St.    Columhkille .  85 

century  had  passed  by,  when,  in  the  year  521,  one  of  the  princes 
of  Ulster  had  a  son  born  to  him.     He  was  of  the  Royal  House  of 
O'Neill  and  O'Donnell,  and  descended  from  "  King  Nial  of  the 
Nine  Hostages,"  the  man  who  is  supposed  to  have  brought  St. 
Patrick  as  a  captive  into  Ireland  for  the  first  time.     This  house 
of  O'Donnell  and  O'Neill  is  so  ancient  that  its  origin  is  lost  in 
the  mists  of  fable,  in  the  pre-historic  time  that  goes  before  any 
written  record  except  the  Holy  Scriptures.     They  were  kings 
in  the  northern  parts  of  Ireland  from  the  sixth  century  down- 
ward.    St.  Patrick  landed  in  Ireland  and  found  O'Donnell  and 
O'Neill  on  the  throne  of  Ireland.     In  the  reign  of  Queen  Eliza- 
beth, only  three  hundred  years  ago,  there  lived  an  Irish  prince 
by  the  name  of  O'Neill,  and  when   Elizabeth  wanted  to  make 
him  an  English  Earl,  he  answered  her  :  "  Earl  me  no  Earls  ;  my 
foot  is  on  my  native  heath,  and  my  name  The  O'Neill  ;  "  and 
scornfully  flung  back  her  coronets  and  dignities.    No  king  in  Eu- 
rope had  so  grand,  so  royal  a  title  as  that  crown  of  the  O'Neills  of 
Ulster.    From  these  came  St.  Columbkille.    The  name  he  received 
was  not  in  baptism,  but  at  his  conversion.     The  word  '■^Cohimba  " 
is  the  Latin  word  for  Dove.   So  gentle,  so  tender  was  he,  so  patient, 
that  they  called  him  the  "  gentle  dove  "  in  the  Irish  language. 
They  went  further,  and  because  he  was  a  monk,  who  loved  to  read 
in  his  cell,  who  loved  to  live  among  his  brothers  in  their  cells, 
they  called  him  Columbkille,  which  means  the  dove  in  the  church 
or  cell.     Tradition  and  history  tell   us  that  no  sooner  was  the 
child  born,  than  his  prince  father  called  in  the  priest  to  baptize 
him.     No  delay,  not  even  for  an  hour.     As  soon  as  the  infant 
opened  his  eyes  and  saw  the  light  of  heaven,  the  divine  adop- 
tion and  the  light  of  supernatural  faith  was  let  in  upon  his  soul, 
by  the  holy  waters  of  baptism.     No  sooner  was  the  child  taken 
from  his  mother's  breast,  than  he  was  handed   over  to  the  care 
of  the  priest  who  baptized  him,  his  father  and  mother  saying  to 
him :    "  We  begot  this  child  as  a  child  of  nature,  a  child  of 
Adam  ;  as  far  as  he   is  ours  he  came  into  this  world  with  the 
curse  of  God  upon  him;  but,  thou,  O  priest  of  God,  thou  dost 
lift  off  that  curse  and  dissipate  it  by  baptism.     He  is  more  your 
child  than  ours  ;  take  him  and  rear  him  up  for  that  God,  whose 
blessing,  whose  adoption  thou  hast  brought  down  upon  him  in 
baptism."     So  he  remained  with  the  priest  that  baptized  him. 
As  the  child  grew,  two  things  grew  side  by  side,  one  with  the 


B6  St.    Coluntbkille. 

other.     The  first  one  belonged  to  the  Irish  character,  and  is  as 
Irish  as  it  could  be.    The  second,  the  divine  grace  of  God,  the  most 
wonderful.     We  can  scarcely  reconcile  the  two,  as  we  look  upon 
that  beautiful  young  figure  that   rises  up  before  us  on  the  pages 
of  history,  as  we  contemplate  his  life.     He  grew  from  a  child 
to  a  boy,  from  a  boy  to  a  young  man.     He  was   the  most  beau- 
tiful youth  in  all  Ireland.     Tall  above  all  other  men  ;  perfectly 
formed,  with  the  lofty  forehead  of  the  king's  son  ;  the  light-blue 
eye,  full  of  genius,  but  full  of  temper;  the  strong,  athletic  form, 
delighting  in  coursing  in  the  fields  in  the  manly  exercises  of  the 
strong  young  man  ;  a  beautiful  temperament,  full  of  imagina- 
tion ;  he   was  a  lover  of  poetry  and  of  music ;  and  his  young 
hands  loved  to  tune  the  chords  of  the  ancient   Irish  harp,  and 
then  to  draw  from  them  with  thrilling  grasp  the  very  spirit  and 
soul  of  Celtic  music.     Full  of  talent  and   intellect,  with   Irish 
brains  in  his  head,  there  was  no  branch  of  knowledge  or  of  sci- 
ence that  was  unknown  to  him ;  with  him,  to  look  at  a  thing 
was  to  know  it ;  he  did   not  require  to  study  it.     But  he  was 
also  full  of  pride,  full  of  passion.     No  man  dared  to  contradict 
him ;  his  temper  was  roused  in  a  moment,  and  when  that  tem- 
per was  roused,  the  young  Irishman  did  not  stop  to  think  of 
what   he    said,    or   what   he   did.      With  the   word    came  the 
blow,  and  then  the  apology,  when  it  was  too  late.     The  very 
soul  of  the  saint,  when  he  looked  at  anything,  decided  whether 
it  was  right  or  wrong.     Full  of  Celtic  obstinacy ;  full  of  pride, 
side  by  side  with  a  heart  as  soft  and  tender  as  that  of  a  young 
woman.     If  he  saw  a  poor  man,  or  cripple,  on  the  way-side, 
in  feverish  misery,  his   heart   seemed    to   break   in   pity,  and 
if    no    one   was   near   to   help,    he   would    take    them    up   on 
his  shoulders  and  carry  them  to  his  house,  and  there  feed  and 
clothe  them.     And  if,  when  carrying  the  poor  man,  or  beggar, 
any  one  on  the  way  passed  by,  and,  when  called  upon  to  help 
him,  refused,  the  temper  came  up  at  once.     There  was  the  full 
Celtic  blood. 

Noble,  gentle,  quick,  irascible,  full  of  character  and  determi- 
nation, even  to  obstinacy.  This  was  the  natural  character,  yet, 
strange  to  say,  side  by  side  with  this,  and  whilst  thus  hindered 
with  a  thousand  imperfections,  there  was  the  most  wonderful 
supernatural  reign  of  divine  graces.  A  thorough  Celt,  a  thorough 
Irishman,  his  angel  guardian  appeared  to  him  when  he  was  be- 


St.  Cohinihkille.  87 

tween  twelve  and  fourteen  years  of  age,  and  said  to  him : 
"  Columba,  I  come  from  heaven  !  "  The  moment  Columba  saw 
him,  in  the  form  of  a  radiant  youth,  he  said  at  once  :  "  Are  all 
the  angels  in  heaven  as  fair  as  you  ?  "  The  angel  answered ; 
"  They  are  all  as  fair,  and  many  more  fair.  I  come  charged  by 
the  Christ,  whom  you  love  so  dearly,  to  ask  you  what  gifts  you 
desire  from  God."  Instantly  the  Irish  youth,  the  young  Irish 
boy,  said :  "  I  ask  from  God  CHASTITY  and  WISDOM."  The 
moment  he  said  the  word,  three  angels,  in  the  form  of  three 
beautiful  maidens,  appeared  before  him.  One,  the  fairest 
of  all,  then  threw  her  arms  around  his  neck.  The  Irish  boy 
drew  back  afraid  :  "Thou  has  refused  my  embrace,  Columba ; 
thou  knowest  not  me  ;  I  am  the  Angel  of  Divine  Virtue,  I 
come  with  my  sisters  to  remain  with  you  forever."  These 
were  the  three  sisters,  Divine  Virtue,  Divine  Wisdom,  and  Di- 
vine Spirit  of  Prophecy,  who  came  to  the  child  as  a  boy  ;  a  boy, 
full  of  faults,  full  of  the  imperfections  of  the  Celtic  character  ;  the 
same  imperfections  that  you  and  I  have ;  not  sitting  down  and 
being  prudent  and  quiet,  but  always  loving  a  contest ;  always  lov- 
ing to  do  a  generous  thing,  and  to  do  it  on  the  spur  of  the  mo- 
ment ;  always  ready  to  turn  around  to  take  up  a  slight  or  an  insult 
before  it  is  offered.  Yet,  side  by  side,  we  have  the  evidence 
in  the  life  of  the  saint  of  the  other  portion  of  the  Celtic  char- 
acter. The  other  great  virtue,  which  with  all  its  faults,  the 
Irish  character  invites,  is  the  Virtue  of  PURITY. 

Thus  it  was  most  natural  that  Columba  became  a  monk,  and 
was  an  obedient  priest.  He  gave  his  light  forever  to  that 
grand  Irish  monasticism,  which  was  the  flower  and  bloom 
of  the  glory  of  Ireland,  in  that  wonderful  sixth  century.  The 
Irish  monks  at  that  time  were  the  most  learned,  as  well  as  the 
most  holy  men  in  the  Catholic  Church.  Everywhere  their  vir- 
tue was  known  ;  in  every  nation  professing  the  Catholic  faith. 
Students  came  in  profusion  to  Ireland,  yea!  even  the  very 
pagan  nations  sent  their  children  to  Ireland,  to  the  grand  uni- 
versity of  the  world,  there  to  learn  every  highest  science  and  art, 
and,  above  all,  the  art  and  glorious  science  of  loving  Jesus 
Christ  and  His  Church.  They  came,  they  entered  the  mighty 
schools  of  Armagh,  of  the  Island  of  Arran,  on  the  western 
coast,  and  of  Lismore,  on  the  banks  of  the  Blackwater.  In  a 
word,  they  came  and  entered  the  mighty  schools  that  covered 


88  St.    Columbkille. 

the  whole  face  of  Ireland,  and  the  old  historians  tell  us  that  it 
was  considered  rather  a  poor  effort  at  a  school  where  there  were 
not  at  least  three  thousand  students.  The  old  Irish  saints  and 
monks,  in  their  history,  tell  us  of  them,  that  they  cultivated 
every  highest  art,  and,  above  all,  the  art  of  music.  In  the  an- 
cient Life  of  St.  Bridget,  we  read  that  on  one  occasion  she 
went  into  the  king's  palace,  perhaps  at  Tara,  and  there  she  saw 
a  harp  hanging  up  on  the  wall.  Turning  to  the  white-haired 
and  gray-bearded  minstrel  she  said  to  him,  "  Harp  me  a  song 
on  thy  harp,"  and  the  old  man  took  down  his  harp  lovingly, 
and  seating  himself,  while  the  young  Christian  virgin  sat  before 
him,  in  melody  he  poured  forth  the  glories  of  God  and  the 
glories  of  Ireland.  So,  when  Columba  entered  the  monastery, 
he  found  there  every  highest  art  and  science  cultivated  ;  but  he 
found  there  two  great  passions  that  were  always  burning  in  the 
heart  of  the  ancient  Irish  monk,  and  these  were  an  overpow- 
ering love  for  Ireland,  and  a  love  for  Ireland's  poetry  and 
music.  The  young  prince,  ardent,  full  of  courage  ;  who  seemed 
to  be  marked  out  far  more  for  a  soldier,  a  sailor,  or  a  captain 
of  armies  than  for  a  monk,  no  sooner  puts  on  the  monastic 
cowl,  than  he  devotes  his  soul  to  three  things,  viz.  :  the  love 
of  God's  divine  religion,  the  love  of  Ireland,  and  the  cultiva- 
tion of  music  and  poetry. 

No  hand  was  more  skillful  to  sweep  the  chords  of  the  lyre, 
and  the  old  chronicles  tell  us  that  when  those  ancient  monks 
assembled,  they  loved  to  play  their  harps  ;  even  when  they  came 
to  the  church  to  sing  the  divine  songs,  the  Psalms  of  David, 
in  the  office  they  recited  every  day.  And  so,  from  their  hands 
went  forth  the  accompanying  thrill  of  Erin's  music,  while  with 
s'veetest  voices  they  melodiously  sang  the  praises  of  Almighty 
Gcd  ;  and  so  rich  and  grand  was  the  voice  of  the  young  nov- 
ice, that  we  read,  when  he  was  an  old  man,  over  sixty  years 
of  ago,  while  preaching  the  gospel  to  the  Picts  and  Scots,  he 
stopped  and  began  to  sing  the  praises  of  God,  to  the  sound  of  his 
Irish  harp.  The  pagan  priests,  who  were  around — who  did  not 
wish  to  let  him  preach — who,  above  all  things,  did  not  want 
him  to  sing,  because  his  voice  had  a  kind  of  supernatural 
power,  that  drew  the  hearts  of  the  pagan  people  to  God — 
raised  their  voices  and  shouted  in  order  to  drown  the  voice 
of  St.  Columba.      The  Irish  saint  looked  around  upon  them, 


St.   Columbkille.  89 

with  the  old  Celtic  fire  of  youth  in  his  aged  eyes ;  he 
pitched  the  highest  note,  and  brought  out  from  his  harp 
the  stronger  chords,  chanting  out  the  Psalms  of  David,  and 
the  praises  of  God  ;  so  that,  although  the  priests  roared  and 
bawled  until  they  were  hoarse,  the  voice  of  the  saint  sounded 
above  them  all.  He  went  over  all  this  country,  and  into 
the  houses  of  the  people,  singing  the  glory  of  the  highest 
heaven. 

Everything  went  calmly  and  quietly  with  Columba  until,  when 
he  was  forty  years  of  age,  an  incident  happened  that  gave  tone 
to  his  whole  life,  although  it  broke  his  heart.  When  the  saint 
was  forty  years  of  age,  he  heard  that  St.  Finnian  possessed  a 
valuable  copy  of  a  part  of  the  Scriptures — the  Book  of  Psalms. 
St.  Columba  wanted  a  copy  of  this  book  for  himself;  and 
went  to  St.  Finnian  and  begged  the  privilege  of  the  book  to 
take  a  copy  of  it.  He  was  refused  ;  the  book  was  too  precious 
to  be  trusted  to  him.  Then  he  asked  at  least  to  be  allowed  to 
go  into  the  church  where  the  book  was  deposited ;  and  there 
he  spent  night  after  night,  privately  writing  out  a  clean  copy  of 
it.  By  the  time  St.  Columba  had  finished  his  copy,  somebody 
who  had  watched  him  at  the  work,  went  and  told  St.  Finnian 
that  the  young  man  had  made  a  copy  of  his  Psalter.  The 
moment  St.  Finnian  heard  of  it  he  laid  claim  to  this  copy  as 
belonging  to  him.  St.  Columba  refused  to  give  it  up,  and  ap- 
pealed to  King  Dermott,  the  Ard-righ  at  Tara.  The  king 
called  his  counsellors  together ;  they  considered  the  matter, 
and  passed  a  decree  that  St.  Columba  should  give  up  the  copy, 
because,  as  the  original  belonged  to  St.  Finnian,  the  copy  was 
only  borrowed  from  it  ;  and  the  Irish  decree  began  with  the 
words  :  "  To  every  cow  her  calf;  to  every  book  its  copy."  Now 
mark  the  action  of  Columba — a  saint,  a  man  devoted  to  prayer 
and  fasting  all  the  days  of  his  life  ;  a  man  gifted  with  miraculous 
powers  ;  and  yet,  under  all  that,  as  thoroughbred  an  Irishman 
as  ever  lived.  The  moment  he  heard  that  the  king  had  resolved 
on  giving  back  the  precious  book,  he  reproached  him,  saying; 
"  I  am  a  cousin  of  yours,  and  there  you  went  against  me !  " 
He  put  the  clanship — the  ^^  Sheanachus" — upon  him.  The 
king  said  he  could  not  help  it.  What  did  St.  Columba  do  ? 
He  took  his  book  under  his  arm,  and  went  away  to  Ulster,  to 
raise  the  clans  of  O'Neill  and  Tyrconnell  of  Tyrone. 


90  Si.   Columbkille. 

He  was  himself  the  son  of  their  king;  they  were  powerful 
clans  in  the  country,  and  the  moment  they  heard  their  kinsman's 
voice,  they  rose  as  one  man  ;  who  ever  yet  asked  a  lot  of  Irish- 
men to  get  up  a  row  and  was  disappointed  ?  They  arose ;  they 
followed  their  glorious,  heroic  monk  down  into  Westmeath. 
There  they  met  the  king  and  his  army,  and,  I  regret  to  say,  a 
battle  was  the  consequence,  in  which  hundreds  of  men  were 
slain,  and  the  fair  plains  of  the  country  were  flooded  with 
blood.  It  was  only  then  that  St.  Columba  perceived  the  ter- 
rible mistake  he  had  made.  Like  an  Irishman,  he  first  had  the 
fight  out,  and  then  he  began  to  reflect  on  it  afterwards. 

Now,  at  this  time,  St.  Columba's  name  was  known  all  over 
Ireland,  for  the  wonderful  spirit  of  prophecy  that  was  upon 
him.  He  was  known  all  over  Ireland  as  a  very  angel  of  God 
for  his  purity.  He  was  already  the  founder  of  several  famous 
monastic  institutions.  In  Ireland  there  were  twelve  large  mon- 
asteries counting  their  monks  by  hundreds  and  thousands,  who 
looked  up  to  Columba  as  their  chief.  His  prophecies  were 
wonderfully  fulfilled,  almost  as  soon  as  uttered.  His  sanctity 
was  an  acknowledged  fact ;  and  yet,  in  the  face  of  all  this,  the 
natural  Celtic  character,  the  rash,  quick  temper  of  the  proud 
Irishman  broke  out  in  him  so  far  that  he  caused  the  death  of  hun- 
dreds of  his  countrymen.  And  the  next  day  after  the  battle  he 
was  on  his  knees  by  the  side  of  his  priest,  acknowledging  his 
culpability.  The  bishops  assembled,  took  thought  over  the 
matter,  and  the  issue  of  it  was,  that  poor,  dear  St.  Columba, 
with  all  his  sanctity,  was  excommunicated.  As  for  the  book 
there  was  no  question  ;  he  never  got  it  back.  Strange  to  say, 
my  friends,  that  very  book,  written  by  St.  Columba's  own  hand, 
remains  and  is  shown  to  this  day  in  Ireland.  He  went  to  con- 
fess, with  great  sorrow,  to  an  aged  monk  named  Molaise.  The 
saint  was  broken-hearted  for  what  he  had  done ;  for  the  blood 
that  had  been  shed  ;  and,  if  you  will,  for  the  scandal  of  his  bad 
temper.  So  he  had  to  endure  and  to  accept  any  penance  that 
would  be  put  upon  him.  The  confessor  asked  him  this  ques- 
tion :  "  What  is  the  strongest  love  you  have  in  your  heart  ?  " 
And  the  poor  penitent  answered  :  "  The  love  that  I  have  for 
Ireland;  that  is  the  strongest  affection  in  my  heart."  Then 
the  most  cruel  penance  was  put  upon  him — that  he  was  to 
depart  from  Ireland,  never  to  see  her,  or  to  put  his  foot  upon 


St.    Colunibkille.  9I 

her  soil  again.  Sentence  passed,  the  man  fell  to  the  earth  as  if 
the  hand  of  God  had  smitten  him — as  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  fell 
under  his  cross,  which  was  more  than  he  could  bear.  Rising 
up  with  despairing  eyes,  he  looked  in  the  face  of  the  terrible 
confessor  to  whom  he  had  confessed  his  sins  ;  then  making  one 
effort,  he  accepted  the  great  sacrifice,  and  said  :  "  Father,  what 
you  have  said  shall  be  fulfilled."  Then  he  wrote  a  letter  to  his 
friend,  Tyrconnell,  in  Ulster;  he  said:  "My  fate  is  sealed. 
My  doom  is  sealed.  A  man  tells  me  that  I  must  exile  myself 
from  Ireland  ;  and  that  man  I  recognize  as  an  angel  of  God, 
and  I  must  go."  With  breaking  heart  and  weeping  eyes,  he 
bade  a  last  farewell  to  the  green  "  Island  of  Saints,"  and  went 
to  an  island  among  the  Hebrides,  on  the  northern  coast  of 
Scotland.  There,  in  the  mist  and  storms  of  that  inhospitable 
region ;  there,  upon  a  bare  rock  out  from  the  main-land,  he 
built  a  monastery ;  and  there  did  he  found  the  far-famed  school 
of  lona. 

Then  began  the  second  grand  portion  of  the  life  of  this  man 
whom  God  had  determined  and  predestined  to  make  so  great  a 
saint.  He  came  to  lona  a  man,  a  prince,  a  Saint  of  Ireland, 
full  of  passion,  full  of  the  nationality  of  his  race,  full  of  the  love 
of  God,  unstained,  unsullied  in  his  virgin  mind  and  soul  as  an 
angel  before  the  throne  of  God.  And  there  he  was  destined  to 
remain  for  thirty-six  long  years,  in  constant  fasting,  in  unceas- 
ing prayer,  until  the  divine  grace,  descending  upon  him,  made 
a  perfect  saint  of  him  who  was  before  so  noble  a  specimen  of 
the  Celtic  race.  Now,  do  you  know  how  hard  it  is  for  one  in 
exile?  Here  is  an  account  given  by  one  of  the  greatest  writers 
of  modern  times.  He  tells  us  of  his  love  that  he  retained  for 
Ireland,  the  affectionate  tenderness  of  the  exile  ;  a  love  which 
displayed  itself  in  the  songs  which  have  been  preserved  to  us. 
It  is  beautiful.  He  goes  on  to  say,  that  amongst  other  things, 
St.  Columbkille  left  behind  him  such  words  as  these : 

"  Death  in  faultless  Ireland,  is  better  than  life  without  end 
in  Albyn. 

"  What  joy  to  fly  upon  the  white-crested  sea,  and  to  watch  the 
waves  break  upon  the  Irish  shore ! 

"  What  joy  to  row  the  little  bark  and  land  among  the  whiten- 
ing foam  upon  the  Irish  shore! 

"  Ah  !  how  my  boat  would  fly  if  its  prow  were  turned  to  my 
Irish  oak-grove ! 


g2  St.   Columbkille. 

"  But  the  noble  sea  now  carries  me  only  to  Albyn,  the  land  of 
ravens. 

"  My  foot  is  in  my  little  boat,  but  my  sad  heart  ever  bleeds. 

"  There  is  a  gray  eye  which  ever  turns  to  Erin  ;  but  never 
in  this  sad  life  shall  it  see  Erin,  nor  her  sons,  nor  her  daughters. 

"  From  the  high  prow  I  look  over  the  sea  ;  great  tears  are 
in  my  gray  eyes  when  I  turn  to  Erin — to  Erin,  where  the  song  of 
the  birds  is  so  sweet ;  where  the  clerks  sing  like  the  birds  ; 
where  the  young  are  so  gentle,  and  the  old  so  wise  ;  where  the 
great  men  are  so  noble  to  look  at,  and  the  women  so  fair," 

In  another  place  he  says  to  one  who  was  returning  from  his 
Scottish  island  to  Ireland  : 

"  Young  traveller,  carry  my  sorrows  with  thee  ;  carry  them  to 
Comghall  of  eternal  life. 

"  Noble  youth,  take  my  prayer  with  thee,  and  my  blessing; 
one  part  for  Ireland — seven  times  may  she  be  blessed ! — and 
the  other  for  Albyn. 

"  Carry  my  blessing  across  the  sea  ;  carry  it  to  the  west.  My 
heart  is  broken  in  my  bosom. 

"  If  death  comes  to  me  suddenly,  it  will  be  because  of  the 
great  love  I  bear  to  the  Gael." 

What  can  be  more  tender  than  the  message  that  he  gives  to 
one  of  his  monks.  One  morning  he  called  from  his  little  cell 
in  lona  to  one  of  his  Irish  monks  there  in  exile.  He  said  to  him, 
"  Brother,  go  out  and  stand  upon  the  hill  near  the  east  shore  ; 
after  you  are  there  awhile  a  bird  will  come  and  fall  at  your  feet 
with  her  broken  wing.  Take  up  that  bird,  dear  brother,"  he 
said,  "  and  feed  and  care  for  her  gently,  restore  her  to  strength 
again,  for  that  bird  will  fly  over  to  Ireland.  Ah !  my  broken 
heart,  that  bird  will  fly  back  to  Ireland  again,  but  I  can  never 
go  back." 

This  was  the  heart  of  the  man,  the  grand  passion  of  his  life, 
which  became  the  source  of  his  martyrdom.  Exile  from  Erin 
was  to  him  the  bitter  penance  that  the  priest  of  God  put  upon 
him  after  the  great  indiscretion  and  sin  of  his  life.  Yet  it  was 
an  Irish  sin.  He  did  not  want  to  glory  in  anything  wrong;  and 
this  I  do  say,  if  it  was  a  great  Irish  sin,  there  was  nothing  mean, 
nothing  nasty  in  that  sin  ;  it  was  the  sin  of  a  brave,  passionate  man. 
He  felt  he  was  injured,  and  he  called  upon  his  people,  and  blood- 
shed followed  upon  it.     It  was  the  act  of  an  impulsive  man  ; 


SL    Columhkille.  93 

nothing  vile  to  be  ashamed  of;  nothing  of  which  the  recollection 
could  bring  anything  but  a  manly  sorrow  to  his  heart.  It 
was  the  Irish  sin. 

Now  began  a  great  period  of  his  life.  He  was  forty-two  years 
of  age  when  he  left  Ireland,  and  landed  on  the  little  island  off 
the  western  coast  of  Scotland.  Here  his  Irish  monks  built  a 
wooden  church,  and  here  that  man  lived  in  one  of  the  humblest 
forms  of  cells.  St.  Columba  for  forty  years  slept  upon  the  bare 
ground  an  hour  or  two  out  of  the  twenty-four.  Thus  he  lay,  with 
a  hard  rock  whereon  to  lay  his  head.  This  island  on  which  the  Irish 
monks  landed  was  destined  to  be  the  most  holy,  the  most  glo- 
riously historic  spot  in  Western  Europe.  He  brought  monks 
from  Ireland  with  him,  and  there,  upon  the  distant  shores  of 
Scotland,  did  he  find  a  people  divided  into  two  great  nations, 
viz.:  the  Irish  who  had  emigrated  hundreds  of  years  before,  in 
the  very  time  of  St.  Patrick,  who  were  Christians,  having 
brought  their  Catholic  religion  with  them,  and  who  possessed 
the  southern  and  western  portions  of  Scotland.  But  the  north- 
ern and  eastern  portions  of  the  land  were  in  the  hands  of  an- 
other nation,  the  most  terrible,  the  most  brave,  and,  with  all, 
the  most  savage  that  ever  the  Roman  legions  encountered. 
They  were  called  the  ancient  Picts.  So  brave  were  they,  that 
when  Julius  Caesar  had  conquered  the  whole  of  England,  he 
never  was  able  to  conquer  the  Picts  and  warlike  savages  that 
inhabited  Scotland.  As  they  were  brave  to  resist  invasion,  so 
were  they  also  brave  with  an  infernal  bravery  in  resisting  the 
Gospel.  Holy  saints  came  to  them  only  to  be  torn  to  pieces 
and  slaughtered.  The  hour  of  their  redemption  came  from  the 
hour  when  St.  Columbkille  landed  on  the  island  of  lona.  He 
brought  a  large  colony  of  Irish  monks,  and  his  first  mission  was 
to  his  own  Irish  people  settled  in  Scotland.  They  were  gov- 
erned by  a  ruler  subject  to  the  King  of  Ireland.  Columbkille 
went  in  amongst  them,  not  to  preach  the  Gospel,  for  that  they 
had  already  received,  but  to  preach  that  which  in  the  heart  and 
on  the  lips  of  the  Irish  priest  is  next  to  the  Gospel.  He  went 
in  amongst  his  exiled  Irish  brethren  to  preach  the  Gospel  of  Irish 
nationality,  and  of  love  for  their  native  land.  He  spoke  to 
them  in  the  language  of  the  bard  and  of  the  poet,  of 
the  ancient  glories  of  Ireland.  He  told  them  that  although 
they  were  established  in  a  foreign  land,  their  best  and  holiest 


94  ^f-    Columbkille. 

remembrance,  their  grandest  and  noblest  influence,  was  the 
recollection  of  the  land  from  which  they  and  their  fathers  came. 
He  chose  one  of  their  princes  to  be  king.  He  banded  them  to- 
gether into  a  kingdom,  and  he  crowned  that  Irish  prince  the 
first  King  of  Scotland.  And  that  Irish  colony  of  Caledo- 
nian Scots,  as  they  were  called,  were  destined  to  conquer  the 
terrible  savage  Picts,  and  the  first  man  that  reigned  was  the 
holy  Irish  Prince  Aiden. 

Well,  my  friends,  it  is  most  interesting  to  us  to  find  that  the 
very  day  that  St.  Columba  crowned  the  Scotch  king,  he  made 
this  speech  to  him:  "  Mark  my  words,"  he  said,  "  O  King,  the 
day  may  come  when  you  and  your  children  after  you,  may  be 
tempted  by  the  devil  to  make  v.-ar  upon  Ireland.  Upon  Ire- 
land," he  said,  "  the  land  of  my  love,  the  land  of  my  race,  and 
of  my  blood."  And  here  are  the  words  that  he  put  upon  that 
king;  in  the  midst  of  the  ceremony  of  the  coronation  he  said 
to  the  king  whom  he  crowned  :  "  Charge  your  sons,  and  let 
them  charge  their  grandchildren  that  they  attempt  no  enter- 
prise against  my  countrymen  and  my  kindred  in  Ireland,  the 
land  of  God ;  or  the  hand  of  God  will  weigh  heavily  upon  them, 
the  hand  of  men  will  be  raised  against  them,  and  the  victory 
of  their  enemies  will  be  sure  in  the  day  they  have  the  misfor- 
tune and  the  curse  of  turning  against  Ireland."  There  was  the 
glorious  law  of  the  Irish  priesthood,  and  of  Irish  history  ;  there 
was  the  true  father  of  the  heroic  St.  Laurence  O'Toole,  that 
stood  in  the  gap  on  that  terrible  day,  when  no  man  in  Ireland 
seemed  to  have  heart  or  courage  enough  to  strike  a  blow  in  the 
invading  enemy's  face. 

Aiden  was  king.  He  was  not  long  crowned,  when  the  Sax- 
ons, who  invaded  England,  that  is  to  say,  the  country  that  was 
south  of  the  Grampian  Hills,  invaded  Scotland  also.  The  king 
had  to  go  forth  to  do  battle  against  them ;  and  here  again  we 
find  our  ancient  Irish  saint  coming  out.  "  Faithful  love  for  his 
race  and  country,  which  had  moved  him  with  compassion  for 
the  young  Irish  kingdom,  did  not  permit  him  to  remain  indif- 
ferent to  the  wars  and  revolutions  which  at  that  time  disturbed 
the  Irish  Scots.  There  was  no  more  marked  feature  in  his 
character,  than  his  constant,  his  compassionate  sympathy,  as 
well  after  as  before  his  removal  to  lona,  in  all  the  struggles  in 
which  his  companions  and  relatives  in  Ireland  were  so  often  en- 


Sf.    Columbkille.  95 

gaged.  Nothing  was  nearer  to  his  heart  than  the  claim  of  kin- 
dred. For  that  reason  alone  he  occupied  himself  without  ceas- 
ing in  the  affairs  of  individual  relatives."  "  This  man,"  he 
would  say,  "  is  of  my  race.  I  must  help  him.  It  is  my  duty 
to  work  for  him,  because  he  is  of  the  same  stock  as  myself." 
"  This  other  man  is  a  relative  of  my  mother's."  Then  he  would 
add,  speaking  to  his  Scottish  monks :  "  My  friends,  they  are 
my  kindred,  descended  from  the  O'Neills."  "  See  them  fighting," 
he  would  exclaim  when  hearing  of  a  victory.  Perhaps,  he  said 
it  in  Heaven  before  the  Throne  of  God  in  the  day  when  Red 
Hugh  O'Neill  destroyed  the  English  army  at  the  Yellow  Ford. 
He  was  praying  one  day  with  his  favored  companion  monk, 
named  Dermot,  and  whilst  they  were  together,  the  saint  said  : 
"  Rise,  O,  Dermot !  ring  the  bell  and  call  the  monks  to  pray." 
The  monk  rang  the  bell,  and  all  the  other  monks  of  the  mon- 
astery came  around    the    father.     Here  are  his  words  : 

"  Now,  let  us  pray  with  intelligence  and  fervor  for  our 
people  and  for  King  Aiden,  who,  at  this  very  moment  is  be- 
ginning his  battle  with  the  barbarians."  They  prayed,  and 
after  a  time  Columba  said  :  "  I  behold  the  barbarians  fly.  Aiden 
is  victorious."  Who  were  the  barbarians?  The  Saxons  of  Eng- 
land, the  pagan  Saxons,  the  haters  of  religion  and  his  Irish  peo- 
ple, the  haters  of  Aiden,  the  Irish  king,  and  his  religion. 

Another  nation  lay  before  him,  and  the  heart  of  the  saint 
was  touched  for  them.  You  have  seen  what  he  did  for  his  own 
countrymen  in  Scotland.  He  saw  in  the  northern  fastnesses  of 
the  land  those  uncivilized,  savage,  pagan  Picts.  The  men  to 
whom  no  missionary  was  ever  able  to  preach  ;  the  men  whom  no 
preacher  dared  to  address.  And  here  again  see  how  the  char- 
acter of  the  saint  came  out.  He  arose  and  took  with  him  a  few 
of  his  Irish  monks,  and  they  travelled  into  the  very  heart  of 
their  country.  He  went  in  order  to  preach  the  gospel  of 
Jesus  Christ  to  the  Picts. 

Their  king  had  established  himself  in  a  mighty  fortress,  his 
pagan  priests  with  him.  They  were  noticed,  and  when  from  the 
towers  they  saw  the  brave  missionary,  the  magnificent  form  of  the 
Irishman,  coming,  the  king  admired  his  manliness  and  his  prince- 
ly and  undaunted  courage.  He  saw  the  light  of  the  sun  beaming 
upon  the  grand  face  of  the  saint,  and  he  loved  him,  but  he  gave 
orders  that  the  gates  of  the  fortress  should  not  be  opened.  *'  Tell 


96  St.    Columhkille. 

him,  no  man  shall  enter  here  as  a  guest  who  is  not  welcome,  and 
that  if  he  attempts  to  preach  he  shall  die."  The  message  was 
given,  but  Columba,  without  hesitation,  without  stopping  to  take 
counsel,  without  one  moment's  prudence,  the  instant  he  heard 
that  the  king  had  said  he  should  not  come,  his  Irish  blood  was 
up,  and  it  seemed  to  him  there  was  no  reason  why  he  should  not 
go  in.  He  went  straight  to  the  very  door  of  the  castle  and 
dealt  it  a  mighty  blow  with  his  staff.  "  Open,"  he  said,  "  in 
the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy 
Ghost."  Again  he  struck  it,  and  the  mighty  gates  fell  open,  and 
St.  Columhkille  of  lona  walked  in  like  a  conqueror.  There  was 
the  king  on  his  throne,  angry,  thirsting  for  his  blood  ;  finding  the 
pagan  priests  around  him  claiming  that  he  had  violated  their 
laws  and  that  he  should  be  put  to  death,  he  lifted  up  that  ter- 
rible voice  of  his,  in  the  Irish  language,  which  was  easily  under- 
stood, with  a  slight  interpretation,  by  the  Gaels  or  the  Picts. 
He  said :  "  I  would  here  speak  to-day.  I  tell  the  king  to  his 
face,  and  the  chieftains,  I  am  Columba  of  lona,  and  would 
make  them  take  the  Gospel,  if  I  had  to  drive  it  down  their 
throats."  Years  of  sorrow,  years  of  repentance,  years  of  prayer 
and  of  fasting  had  passed  over  his  head,  and  he  was  now  an  eld- 
erly man,  beyond  the  prime  of  life,  but  the  moment  opposition 
is  shown  to  a  righteous  cause,  that  moment  the  old  Irish  blood 
of  his  youth,  and  all  the  terrible  ardor  of  his  Celtic  nature  is 
raised  within  him.  My  friends,  he  converted  the  Pictish  nation 
nearly  as  perfectly  as  Patrick  converted  the  Irish.  He  left  his 
character  upon  them,  so  that  they  became  a  staunch,  a  loyal,  and 
true  Catholic  race  in  the  Highlands  of  Scotland,  and  they  con- 
tinued so  to  be,  almost  to  the  present  hour.  Highlanders  of 
Scotland.  Yes  !  there  are  villages  in  the  Highlands  of  Scotland 
which  have  suffered  for  defense  of  their  faith,  like  Ireland  ; 
suffered  by  bad  landlords;  the  same  scourge  came  upon  them 
of  English  Protestantism  and  bad  laws ;  but  the  traditions  of 
Ireland's  Columba  was  with  them,  and  his  words  remained  with 
them  like  a  blessing,  and  there  are  villages  in  Scotland  that 
never  yet  lost  their  Catholic  faith,  through  weal  or  through  woe. 
Now  another  nation  lay  before  him.  Great  was  the  heart  of 
the  man  and  true.  He  saw  the  pagan  Saxons  of  England  in 
their  hundreds  and  thousands.  What  did  they  worship  ?  They 
worshipped  the  meanest  and  lowest  forms  of  idolatry,  they  had 


St.    Columbkille.  97 

not  the  grace  to  worship  the  Sun,  like  the  Irish.  They 
worshiped  Thor,  the  god  of  the  Scandinavians,  a  huge  fellow 
with  goggle  eyes,  no  feet,  and  a  big  club  in  his  hands.  They 
were  Saxons !  St.  Columba  neither  loved  nor  liked  them.  They 
were  Saxons !  Perhaps  he,  being  a  prophet,  foresaw  that  they 
would  be  the  "  Scourge  of  God  "  to  the  land  of  his  love.  They 
were  Saxons !  They  had  assaulted  and  invaded  the  land  of  his 
own  people  in  Scotland,  and  the  king  whom  he  had  crowned. 
But  they  were  men,  and  they  had  souls.  And  he  loved  them 
in  the  mighty  love  that  burned  in  his  heart  for  the  Lord  and 
Saviour  who  died  for  him.  So,  accordingly,  we  find  that  after  his 
conversion  of  the  Picts,  the  mighty  preacher  went  south,  and 
with  the  aid  of  his  monastic  brethren,  the  Irish  St.  Columbkille 
converted  all  the  Saxons  of  Northumbria  and  the  middle  por- 
tions of  England.  Badly  have  they  repaid  us,  for  we  gave  them 
faith,  and  they  endeavored  to  rob  us  of  our  faith.  We  gave 
them  through  our  great  St.  Columbkille  the  liberty  of  the  angels 
of  God,  and  they  have  endeavored  to  deprive  us  of  that  liberty 
which  is  the  inheritance  and  birthright  of  the  children  of  men. 
We  gave  them  light,  and  they  have  endeavored  to  repay  us  witb 
darkness.  To  the  Irish  saint  and  his  brethren  chiefly  belongs  the 
honor  of  converting  the  Saxons  to  Christianity.  For  though  St. 
Augustine  came  to  England  to  preach  the  gospel,  his  labors 
were  only  in  the  south.  St.  Columbkille  and  his  children  had 
already  converted  the  Saxons  of  the  north.  They  were  the 
true  apostles  of  England. 

And  now  old  age  was  upon  him.  He  was  approaching  his 
seventy-sixth  year,  and  we  read  two  things  of  him,  namely — 
that  to  the  last  day  of  his  life  he  never  mitigated  or  changed 
his  austerities.  The  old  man  of  seventy-six  still  lay  upon  the 
damp  earth,  with  a  rock  for  his  pillow.  The  old  man  of  seven- 
ty-six still  fasted  every  day  of  his  life.  The  old  man  of  seven- 
ty-six seemed  to  have  a  heart  as  young,  as  compassionate,  as 
tender,  as  if  he  was  a  boy  of  fourteen.  And  one  little  incident 
shows  us  how  much  the  Irish  fire  was  tamed  down  in  him  by 
the  sanctity  of  the  saint.  When  he  was  an  old  man,  the  great 
feature  of  his  character  was,  that  he  still  continued  the  holy 
work  as  diligently  as  when  he  was  young — writing  a  copy  of  the 
sacred  Scriptures.  The  great  passion  of  his  life  was  writing 
books — there  was  no  printing  in  those  days — writing  books,  even 

7 


98  St.    Columhkille. 

when  he  was  bent  to  the  earth  with  old  age  and  austerities.  Yet 
he  fired  up  into  the  ardor  of  the  young  harpist  as  he  took  the 
Irish  harp,  and  with  his  aged  fingers  swept  the  chords,  his  voice 
pouring  forth  the  praises  of  Ireland  and  of  his  God.  We  read 
that  when  he  was  an  old  man,  strangers  frequently  came  to  him 
for  his  blessing ;  and  one  day  a  man  came  into  the  little  room 
where  St.  Columba  was  writing,  and  in  his  eagerness  to  get  the 
saint's  blessing,  rushed  forward  with  such  vehemence  that  he 
overturned  the  ink-bottle  and  destroyed  the  whole  manuscript. 
Oh !  if  he  had  done  that  thirty  or  forty  years  before.  But  all  the 
old  saint  did  now,  was  to  put  his  arms  about  him,  embrace  him, 
and  say:  "  Have  patience,  my  son  ;  be  gentle  ;  don't  be  in  such 
a  hurry." 

He  was  seventy-six  years  of  age,  and  he  prayed  that  he  might 
die  at  Easter.  God  sent  an  angel  to  tell  him  that  his  prayer 
was  granted.  Now,  mark  the  Irish  heart  again.  The  moment 
that  he  heard  his  prayer  was  granted,  he  prayed  to  God  to  let 
him  live  another  month  ;  for  he  said  to  the  monks  :  "  My  chil- 
dren, I  prayed  that  I  might  die  and  pass  my  Easter  Sunday  in 
heaven.  God  said  He  would  grant  my  prayer;  but  then  I  re- 
membered that  you  have  just  fasted  a  long  Lent,  upon  bread 
and  water,  and  that  you  are  all  looking  forward  to  Easter  Sun- 
day as  a  day  of  joy ;  and  if  I  died  on  that  day,  it  would  be  a 
sad  and  sorrowful  day ;  so  I  asked  my  God  to  put  it  off  a  month 
longer.'^  The  month  passed.  It  was  Saturday  night,  and  Co- 
lumba, in  the  morning,  told  his  children,  the  monks:  "This 
night  I  will  die  and  take  my  rest."  The  monks  were  accus- 
tomed to  go  into  the  church  precisely  at  twelve  o'clock.  The 
bells  rang,  and  Columba  was  always  in  the  church  to  prayer 
when  he  was  not  studying  ;  he  went  before  the  others  into  the 
dark  church — there  were  no  lights — and  knelt  at  the  foot  of  the 
altar.  Dermott,  his  faithful  attendant,  followed  the  old  man, 
and,  groping  about  in  the  church  for  him,  at  first  not  being 
able  to  see  him,  exclaimed :  "  Father !  dear  father !  where 
art  thou  ? "  A  feeble  raoan  soon  was  heard,  and  guided  to 
where  he  lay.  The  other  monks  came  in  bringing  torches 
in  their  hands,  an-d  found  Columba  stretched  out — dying ! 
grasping  the  foot  of  the  altar — dying !  under  the  very  eyes  of 
that  Lord  and  God  whom  he  loved  so  well — dying !  with  a 
heart  long  since  broken  with  love  for  that  Lord  Jesus,  and  for 


St.    Colunibkille. 


99 


the  dear  land  that  he  had  left  behind  him.  They  raised  him  up, 
and  with  his  dying  lips  he  said  :  "  Come  around  me  that  I  may 
give  you  my  last  blessing."  He  lifted  his  aged  hand,  and  before 
the  sign  of  the  Cross  was  made,  the  hand  fell  by  his  side ;  the 
light  of  human  love  departed  from  his  eye  ;  and  one  of  the  most 
glorious  souls  of  apostles  and  martyrs  that  ever  passed  into 
Thy  kingdom,  O  Lord  !  beheld  Thee  in  Thy  joy  ! 

This  was  our  old  saint.  How  grand,  how  great  is  his  national 
character !  How  great  the  character  of  the  saint  in  his  cell ! 
Above  all,  how  interesting  to  study  the  depths  of  that  soul,  and 
the  changes  which  had  taken  place  in  it  since  his  youth.  At  the 
beginning  of  his  life,  he  was  vindictive,  passionate,  bold,  a  man 
of  strife,  born  a  soldier  rather  than  a  monk.  Often  in  his  life- 
time, he  was  involved  in  fighting ;  and  when  the  Irish  were 
fighting  their  battles  they  would  cry  out,  "  Columba,  pray  for 
us."  And  his  soul  went  out  from  his  cell  into  the  thick  of  the 
fight  with  them.  He  was,  at  the  same  time,  full  of  contradic- 
tions and  contrasts.  He  was  tender  and  irritable,  rude  and 
courageous,  ironical  and  compassionate,  caressing,  imperious, 
grateful,  revengeful,  led  by  pity  as  well  as  by  wrong,  ever 
moved  by  generous  passions ;  and  among  all  passions,  fired  to 
the  last  by  the  love  of  poetry  and  the  love  of  Ireland  ;  little  in- 
clined to  melancholy  when  he  had  once  surmounted  the  great 
sorrow  of  his  life,  which  was  his  exile.  Thus,  full  of  contradic- 
tions, yet  harmonized  by  divine  grace,  he  lived  and  died  a  saint 
who  is  the  glory  of  the  Church  of  God.  And  who,  I  hope, 
and  trust,  and  believe,  will,  by  his  prayer,  yet  obtain  for  hi.s 
native  country  of  Ireland  all  which  she  legitimately  desires  of 
happiness,  of  freedom,  and  of  joy. 


CIVIL  AND  RELIGIOUS  LIBERTY. 


[Lecture  delivered  in  Hartford,  Conn.,  May  7th,  1872.] 

Y  FRIENDS:  It  is  my  privilege  this  evening  to  ad- 
dress an  audience  not  only  of  Catholics,  and  those  of 
my  own  loved  race,  but  it  is  my  privilege  to  address 
Protestants  and  Americans  upon  the  most  glorious 
subject  that  can  occupy  the  mind  of  any  man,  especially  that 
of  a  Catholic  priest,  viz. :  the  subject  of  "  Civil  and  Religious 
Freedom."  Almighty  God  has  bestowed  many  gifts  upon 
man  ;  and  amongst  the  first  of  these  divine  endowments  is  the 
gift  of  freedom.  He  created  man  not  only  with  a  powerful  in- 
tellect whereby  to  understand — with  affections  whereby  to 
love  ;  but  He  crowned  all  other  gifts  with  the  glorious  inherit- 
ance of  freedom.  And  in  this  do  we  see  the  magnificent  im- 
age of  God  reflected  in  His  creatures.  He  stamped  His  resem- 
blance upon  man  in  the  power  of  intelligence,  and  in  the  power 
of  love.  When  He  made  man  in  His  own  image,  He  made 
him  free ;  and  the  man  who  deprives  another  of  that  sacred 
freedom,  sins  against  God.  And  that  nation  commits  a  terrible 
sin  against  Almighty  God,  as  well  as  society,  which  deprives  a 
people  of  this  sacred  right. 

It  is  of  this  glorious  boon — this  magnificent  gift  of  freedom — 
I  am  going  to  speak.  And  let  me  first  tell  you  that  you  who 
are  assembled  here  within  these  sacred  walls  are  citizens  of  the 
freest  country  on  the  face  of  the  earth.  Many  of  you,  as  well 
as  I,  know  well  what  the  feeling  is  to  speak  with  bated  breath, 
and  to  watch  our  words.  Many  of  you,  as  w^ell  as  myself,  are 
familiar  with  the  traditions  of  intellectual  and  religious  slavery. 
We  have  heard  them  from  our  fathers'  lips ;  and  we  recollect 
the  bitter  days  when  education  and  religious  freedom  were  un- 
known in  the  glorious  and  venerable  land  from  which  so  many 


Civil  and  Religious  Liberty.  loi 

of  us  have  sprung.  But  now,  standing  upon  the  freedom- 
crowned  shores  of  mighty  Columbia,  we  enjoy  the  gift  ;  we 
come  into  the  inheritance  denied  us  so  long;  and  I,  in  this 
proscribed  habit,  can  speak  as  a  freeman,  and  you  can  hear 
from  my  lips  the  glorious  words  of  freedom,  for  I  have  a  right 
to  speak  to  you  on  that  theme.  Coming  before  you  in  this 
robe,  which  represents  seven  hundred  years  of  existence  in  the 
Church  of  God,  I  have  the  right  to  speak  to  you  of  freedom.  I 
say  that  no  one  has  a  better  right  than  I,  a  Catholic  priest,  and 
a  Dominican  friar.  And  I  have  a  right,  as  an  Irishman  talking 
to  Irishmen ;  because  no  race  under  Heaven  has  ever  wor- 
shiped at  the  sacred  shrine  of  freedom  as  I  and  my  fathers 
have  ;  because  no  race  upon  which  the  sun  shines  has  ever  bat- 
tled with  more  valiant  hands  than  mine  has.  And  I  have  the 
right  to  speak  to  those  among  you  who  are  not  Irishmen,  be- 
cause no  man  is  so  worthy  to  hear  the  sacred  praises  of  liberty 
as  the  American,  whose  very  name  and  nationality  are  the 
glorious  embodiment  and  incarnation  of  civil  and  religious 
liberty. 

Some  of  you  may  perhaps  say :  "  All  this  is  very  well,  but 
what  about  the  Catholic  Church — what  does  she  say  ?  Does 
she  fetter  the  hand  and  bind  the  lips  upon  this  sacred  theme?" 
I  say,  no!  I  look  upon  my  native  land,  and  see  in  Ireland  the 
martyr  among  nations  for  the  sacred  cause  of  freedom.  I  turn 
to  my  own  Church — to  the  glorious  Church  of  Christ,  the  Holy 
Catholic  Church,  whose  children  we  are ;  and  when  I  look  upon 
her  royal  face,  upon  which  Christ  Himself  has  set  His  crown,  I 
see  no  wrinkle  of  slavery,  but  I  see  the  very  mother  of  civil 
and  religious  liberty. 

And,  my  friends,  before  we  go  further,  it  will  be  well  for  us 
to  consider  what  civil  and  religious  liberty  means.  A  man  may 
talk  of  freedom  and  liberty,  but  not  know  what  it  means.  For 
more  than  three  hundred  years  England  has  boasted  that  she, 
among  the  nations,  is  the  apostle  of  constitutional,  political, 
social,  civil,  and  religious  liberty.  She  has  boasted  of  it  for  cen- 
turies. But  who  is  there  that  reads  her  history  and  contem- 
plates her  action  towards  unhappy  Ireland,  that  cannot  see  that 
she  has  been  the  greatest  oppressor  of  liberty,  not  allowing  the 
Irish  people  to  worship  at  their  own  altars,  and  even  forbidding 
them  to  educate  their  children  ;  telling  the  Irishman  he  must 


102  Civil  and  Religious  Liberty. 

stand  aside  because  he  is  a  Catholic;  forbidding  him  to  plead 
at  the  bar,  and  not  allowing  him  security  to  his  property,  per- 
son, or  life?  Let  us  examine  this  question,  and  see  first  what 
religious  liberty  is.  We  shall  find,  when  we  examine  histori- 
cally, that  the  Catholic  Church,  so  far  from  being  the  enemy  of 
civil  and  religious  liberty,  is  the  mother  of  both.  What  is  relig- 
ious liberty?  Men,  nowadays,  think  that  every  man  is  perfectly 
free  to  believe  anything  he  likes,  or  nothing  at  all ;  that,  no  mat- 
ter how  strange  or  eccentric  his  opinions  may  be,  he  has  the 
right  to  preach,  make  converts,  and  build  up  churches  here, 
there,  and  everywhere,  and  persuade  all  he  can  to  his  own  par- 
ticular views,  no  matter  how  erroneous  they  may  be.  Religious 
liberty,  in  this  day  of  ours,  involves  not  only  the  absence  of 
persecution,  but  absolute  encouragement  to  every  man  to  dis- 
card the  religious  idea  altogether,  and  take  up  atheism  if  he 
pleases.  That  is  the  idea  of  the  day.  But,  strange  to  say,  side 
by  side  with  this  liberty,  comes  the  idea  that  as  soon  as  a  man 
enters  this  or  that  sect,  he  feels  in  duty  bound  to  hate  every 
man  who  disagrees  with  him,  and  to  persecute  him.  Is  not 
this  true  ?  Does  not  history  tell  us  this  to-day?  In  England 
and  Ireland,  not  content  with  holding  their  own  opinions,  our 
good  Protestant  and  other  brethren  go  among  Catholics  and 
insult  them,  and  speak  words  of  irony  against  the  Blessed 
Virgin  ;  they  caricature  the  Catholic  worship  ;  and  then,  among 
themselves,  damn  one  another.  They  believe  their  own  faith 
the  right  one,  and  that  the  believers  in  all  others  are  lost  eter- 
nally. A  popular  writer  says :  "  I  have  an  uncle  who  is  a  pious 
Methodist  preacher,  and  when  he  found  I  was  associating  with 
a  Catholic,  he  went  to  my  father  and  mother,  and  told  them 
I  was  destined  for  eternal  damnation  !  "  And  does  not  history 
tell  us  the  same  in  this  country,  free  as  it  is,  and  glorious  as  it 
is  in  its  freedom  ?  Have  we  never  heard  of  Catholic  churches 
and  convents  being  set  on  fire  here,  and  of  Catholic  priests  being 
insulted  and  outraged  in  the  most  terrible  manner?  Most  as- 
suredly we  have.  Therefore,  the  theory  of  universal  toleration 
does  not  tally  at  all  with  the  practices  of  the  various  professors 
of  religion  found  here  and  in  every  other  land. 

Such  being  the  case,  let  us  see  what  the  real  meaning  of  re- 
ligious liberty  is.  Where  shall  we  find  its  definition  ?  Of  whom 
shall  we  inquire  ?     Let  us  go  to  God.     I  will  not  give  what  this 


Civil  and  Religious  Liberty.  1 03 

man  or  that — this  statesman  or  that  philosopher — has  written 
upon  the  subject ;  but  I  will  go  at  once  to  the  fountain-head  of 
all  knowledge,  of  all  wisdom  and  truth.  I  will  ask  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  the  Master,  to  tell  us  what  religious  liberty  is  ;  for 
He  knows  best  He  answers  in  the  very  words  of  the  Gospel  : 
Religious  liberty  consists  in  the  knowledge  of  the  truth  as  it  is 
in  the  mind  of  God  ;  in  the  knowledge  of  the  Saviour.  "You 
shall  know  the  truth,  and  the  truth  shall  make  you  free."  You 
shall  know  the  truth,  and  there  shall  be  no  doubt,  no  hesitation 
about  it.  You  shall  know  it  just  as  you  know  that  two  and 
two  make  four.  No  one  can  argue  you  out  of  the  knowledge 
of  that  fact.  If  any  one  tries  to  convince  you  of  its  opposite, 
he  might  as  well  save  himself  the  trouble.  The  man  is  free 
because  he  knows  the  conclusion.  The  Saviour  said  :  "  You 
shall  know  the  truth,  and  the  truth  shall  make  you  free."  Now, 
what  comes  of  this  ?  Every  one  of  common  sense  must  know  that 
two  great  conclusions  follow.  The  first  is,  that  the  multiplicity 
of  religious  opinions  varying  with  one  another — the  multiplicity 
of  religious  sects  existing  in  the  land — is  no  proof  of  the  relig- 
ious liberty  of  which  Christ  told  us.  Out  of  forty  or  fifty  sects, 
all  holding  different  doctrines,  only  one  can  be  true.  Truth  is 
but  one,  and  cannot  be  multiplied ;  thirty-nine  out  of  forty 
must  be  false.  If  Christ  said  that  freedom  consists  in  the 
knowledge  of  the  truth,  it  follows  that  thirty-nine  are  false. 
They  are  not  under  persecution — not  under  the  lash  of  religious 
contest — do  not  suffer  for  what  they  believe.  They  are  toler- 
ated, and  even  encouraged;  nevertheless,  they  are  false.  It  is 
the  slavery  of  man's  intellect ;  because  liberty,  in  man's  mind, 
consists  in  knowing  the  truth  and  refusing  the  lie.  It  is  quite 
evident,  therefore,  that  if  the  truth  be  one,  and  only  one,  and 
if  knowledge  of  that  truth  be  religious  freedom,  the  moment 
people  unite  to  preach  that  truth,  this  unity  gives  us  religious 
freedom.  I  insist  upon  it,  that  in  the  Catholic  Church  there  is 
perfect  religious  freedom.     To  give  an  example. 

Suppose  I  were  to  come  here  in  the  capacity  of  a  free  Meth- 
odist preacher,  and  that  you  were  Protestants.  I  can  say  what 
I  like.  There  is  no  one  to  tell  me  that  I  am  preaching  heresy. 
There  are  men  in  this  country  who  preach  contradictory  doc- 
trines day  after  day — one  thing  one  Sunday,  and  the  opposite 
the  next.     If  I  came  to  you  as  a  Protestant,  and  tried  to  per- 


104  Civil  and  Religious  Liberty. 

suade  you  that  Jesus  Christ  was  not  the  Son  of  God  after  all, 
I  might  send  half  of  you  home  doubting,  and  consequently  not 
Christians  at  all.  But  coming  here  as  a  Catholic  priest,  if  I 
were  to  say  the  least  thing  against  the  Catholic  Church — to 
breathe  the  slightest  doubt  as  to  the  sacraments,  the  Blessed 
Virgin,  or  any  point  of  Catholic  doctrine,  is  there  a  child  among 
you  who  could  be  deceived  ?  You  would  rise  up  and  cry  anath- 
ema upon  me,  though  I  were  the  greatest  man  that  ever  lived. 
Don't  you  see,  therefore,  that  you  are  free — that  I  cannot  say 
a  word  against  the  Catholic  Church  ?  The  Church  saves  you 
from  any  religious  error.  A  man  may  be  free  to  urge  you  to 
error;  but  you  see  how  this  unity  of  belief — this  having  one 
truth,  and  knowing  that  it  comes  from  God — saves  men  from 
the  highest  danger.  This  is  the  meaning  of  the  words  of  Jesus 
Christ :  "  You  shall  know  the  truth,  and  the  truth  shall  make 
you  free." 

Now,  I  ask,  where,  among  the  many  teachers  that  rise  up  to 
proclaim  religion  to  the  people,  is  there  one  voice  outside  of  the 
Catholic  Church  that  says  :  "  This  is  the  truth — I  believe  it?  " 
There  is  not  one.  Argue  with  Evangelical  clergymen,  with 
Episcopal,  Methodist,  or  any  other  denomination,  and  they  will 
say  over  and  over  again,  "  My  friends,  are  you  quite  sure  that 
what  you  say  is  truth  ?  Are  you  not  trying  to  deceive  me  ?  " 
The  Catholic  priest  says,  "  I  am  sure.  My  teaching  comes 
from  the  lips  of  Jesus  Christ  and  from  the  Church — that  Church 
of  which  God  said :  *  She  is  founded  upon  a  rock,  and  the  gates 
of  hell  shall  never  prevail  against  her.'  "  No  lie  shall  ever  be 
found  upon  her  lips.  She  is  a  light  set  upon  a  candlestick. 
The  Church  of  God  is  to  be  the  light  of  the  world,  and  all  men 
are  to  see  it  and  not  doubt. 

And  now,  with  this  divine  charge,  and  with  the  glorious  com- 
mission to  teach,  the  Church  of  God  went  into  the  world,  and 
from  the  lips  of  the  apostles  and  from  the  priesthood,  her  voice 
has  never  been  silent  for  eighteen  hundred  years.  You  may 
ask,  "  Did  she  not  also  go  with  the  sword  of  persecution  to 
strike  down  those  who  disagreed  with  her  ?  "  I  deny  it.  I 
deny  it  as  a  popular  fallacy.  I  deny  it  as  an  interested  and 
false  statement.  If  you  wish  to  know  what  the  Catholic  Church 
is,  you  must  not  study  her  in  this  or  that  government.  You 
will  find  in  every  case  that  the  act  of  persecution  was  the  act  of 


Civil  and  Religious  Liberty.  105 

the  government  and  not  of  the  Church.  I  assert  that  history 
proves  that  when  the  Spanish  government,  under  the  name  of 
the  Spanish  Inquisition,  was  putting  the  people  to  death,  the 
Pope  of  Rome  pleaded  to  save  those  men.  Turn  to  Rome. 
There,  if  you  find  persecution,  I  will  admit  that  the  Catholic 
Church  is  a  persecuting  Church.  But  with  all  pride,  I  say  it  as 
a  Catholic  priest,  that  Rome,  whenever  she  had  the  power, 
has  never  been  known  to  put  a  man  to  death  for  his  religion. 
But  let  us  turn  to  the  nation  and  the  race  among  all  the  races 
on  earth  which,  for  fourteen  hundred  years,  has  been  the 
most  Catholic — the  nation  whose  character  and  genius  are  the 
offspring  of  the  Catholic  religion — I  mean  the  glorious  Irish 
nation.  Then,  surely,  if  the  spirit  of  persecution  be  in  the 
Catholic  Church,  we  shall  find  some  trait  of  it  in  this  race. 
But  no.  In  the  most  glorious  history  ever  written  of  any 
people,  the  most  magnificent  annals  ever  inscribed  to  perpetuate 
the  glory  of  any  race — the  annals  of  Ireland — I  read  that  her 
blood  was  shed  for  two  hundred  years  in  defense  of  the  Cath- 
olic religion,  but  try  in  vain  to  discover  that  Ireland  ever  yet 
lifted  a  persecuting  hand  to  strike  a  man  because  of  his  religion. 
Let  us  take  some  of  the  leading  points  to  prove  it.  Persecu- 
tion began  in  Ireland  in  the  sixteenth  century.  For  one  hundred 
and  fifty  years  it  continued.  The  Catholics  were  robbed  of  all 
they  had  in  this  world.  Under  the  successive  persecutions  of 
Elizabeth,  of  Charles  the  First,  and  under  the  terrible  Cromwell, 
the  Catholics  were  robbed  of  everything.  They  were  not  al- 
lowed to  possess  an  acre  of  land,  nor  to  educate  their  children. 
The  best  of  them  were  slain.  Their  priests  were  hunted  like 
wolves,  sold  in  thousands  like  slaves,  and  sent  to  Jamaica  to 
die.  In  1685  the  Catholics  gave  a  king  to  England — the  Duke 
of  York,  James  the  Second.  The  moment  he  ascended  the 
throne  of  England,  he  declared  the  Catholic  religion  was  to  be 
the  religion  of  his  people.  He  saw  in  Ireland  a  whole  country 
of  Catholics,  but  all  places  of  preferment,  all  high  positions,  in 
the  hands  of  Protestants.  Among  the  first  things  this  English 
Catholic  did,  was  to  remove  the  Protestants  and  put  in  Cath- 
olics. He  removed  several  judges.  This  was  called  persecution. 
Now,  what  does  history  tell  us  ?  As  soon  as  the  news  reached 
Rome  and  the  Pope,  that  the  new  Catholic  king  was  perse- 
cuting his  Protestant  subjects — taking  them  out  of  their  places 


lo6  Civil  and  Religious  Liberty. 

and  putting  Catholics  in — the  Pope  wrote  a  letter  to  King 
James,  warning  him  that  he  had  no  right  to  persecute.  At 
the  same  time  a  Catholic  parliament  was  assembled  in  Dub- 
lin. They  were  in  power  for  the  first  time  in  one  hundred  and 
fifty  years.  The  tables  were  turned,  and  the  Protestants  in 
Ireland  were  down  now.  Remember  that  these  Protestants 
had  for  one  hundred  and  fifty  years  been  shedding  our  blood, 
and  never  spared  us.  They  had  crushed  us  with  an  iron  heel. 
You  might  imagine  that  now,  when  this  Catholic  parliament  as- 
sembled, they  would  retaliate.  But  mark  this.  The  first  law 
of  that  parliament  was,  that  every  man  in  Ireland  was  free  to 
profess  his  religion  openly,  and  no  man  was  ever  again  to  be 
persecuted  for  conscience'  sake.  In  a  short  time  James  lost 
his  throne,  and  a  Protestant  king  usurped  it.  No  sooner 
was  that  Protestant  king  in  power  than  the  whole  of  Ireland 
was  flooded  again  with  Catholic  blood,  shed  in  the  persecutions 
of  the  Catholics. 

This  is  history,  and  no  man  can  deny  it.  I  point  to  these 
facts  to  vindicate  the  genius  of  Catholics  from  the  reproach 
of  religious  persecution ;  for  if  there  is  a  race  that  repre- 
sents Catholicity,  it  is  the  glorious  Irish  race,  to  which  it  is 
my  pride  to  belong.  Take  again,  my  dear  friends,  the  action 
of  Ireland  but  six  years  ago.  The  hand  of  God  had  swept 
over  us,  and  we  bowed  before  it.  The  hand  of  God  was  suc- 
ceeded by  the  hand  of  man — the  exterminating  hand  of  the 
landlord.  We  found  ourselves  reduced  to  five  millions  of  men 
at  the  time  the  Protestant  church  was  disestablished  in  Ireland. 
The  Catholics  were  to  the  Protestants  as  seven  to  one.  During 
all  the  time  that  agitation  was  going  on,  did  it  strike  you  that 
the  newspapers  brought  no  word  of  a  single  Protestant  being 
insulted  by  a  Catholic — not  a  word  of  insult.  Not  a  word  from 
five  million  of  Catholics  that  might  hurt  the  feelings  of  a  Prot- 
estant or  make  him  blush  or  hang  his  head  for  shame.  They 
merely  said  to  the  Protestants :  "  You  have  ceased  to  be  our 
masters,  and  we  have  ceased  to  be  your  slaves.  Now,  we  meet 
on  the  same  broad  platform  of  religious  liberty.  Now  we  are 
prepared  to  forget  the  three  hundred  years  of  persecution  and 
bloodshed.  Put  your  hands  in  ours.  Henceforth  religious  dis- 
cord is  swept  away.  Hereafter  let  us  fight  for  our  honor  to- 
gether." 


Civil  and  Religious  Liberty.  107 

Ah  !  contrast  it.  I  have  often  been  obliged  to  contrast  it.  I 
have  lived  as  a  priest  in  England,  afraid  to  go  outside  my  own 
door  for  fear  of  insult  and  outrage.  In  passing  along  the  streets, 
in  a  town  where  the  population  was  nearly  all  Protestant,  I  have 
been  personally  assailed  by  the  school  children  with  stones,  be- 
cause I  was  a  Catholic  ;  and  the  teachers  did  not  reprimand 
them.  I  have  come  back  to  my  native  county  in  Ireland,  where 
there  are  twenty  thousand  Protestants,  some  of  them  ministers, 
and  they  vilify  us  day  after  day,  calling  us  lying  priests  and  hyp- 
ocrites. Yet  they  are  able  to  walk  the  streets  without  receiv- 
ing insult.  Now,  in  the  face  of  all  this,  and  of  ten  thousand  like 
instances,  is  it  not  enough  to  make  a  man's  blood  boil  to 
hear  these  men  say:  "You  Catholics  are  always  persecuting. 
If  you  only  had  the  power  you  would  tear  us  to  pieces." 
Well,  we  have  had  the  power  in  grand  old  Ireland,  and 
no  man  was  torn  to  pieces  nor  insulted,  even  though  standing 
alone. 

Next  to  religious  liberty  and  unity — which  is  the  essence  of 
liberty — next  to  this  in  grandeur  and  magnificence,  is  civil  and 
political  liberty.  And  now,  as  we  have  seen  in  what  religious 
liberty  consists,  it  is  good  to  see  in  what  civil  liberty  consists. 
What  is  the  essence  of  that  freedom  we  all  prize  ?  One  says  it 
is  in  being  allowed  to  do  just  what  you  like.  No  !  God  forbid. 
That  is  a  liberty  that  would  allow  the  highwayman  to  put  a 
pistol  to  your  head,  and  say  :  "  Your  money  or  your  life  !  This 
is  a  free  country,  where  we  can  all  do  as  we  like,  and  this  is 
what  I  like  to  do."  Some  thirty  years  ago,  when  I  was  a  young 
boy,  there  was  a  beggar  in  the  west  of  Ireland,  who  was  in  the 
habit  of  threatening  people  in  this  way.  He  would  meet  a 
man  or  a  woman,  in  a  lonely  place,  and  would  walk  up  and  say, 
"  Give  me  something,  or  else "  (drawing  off  in  a  threaten- 
ing attitude).  One  day  a  man  as  big  as  he  was  met  him.  The 
beggar  drew  up  as  usual,  and  said,  "  Give  me  something,  or  else 

"     "Or   else   what?"  thundered  the   other.     "  Or  else  I 

shall  have  to  go  without  it,"  said  the  beggar,  viewing  the 
broad  shoulders  before  him.  In  those  days  beggars  were  the 
only  free  men  in  the  land.  One  of  them  went  into  a  farmer's 
house,  and  sat  down  to  the  table  and  helped  himself,  without 
saying  so  much  as  "  by  your  leave."  He  staid  several  days, 
till  finally  the  farmer  said  to  him  one  day,  "  As  you  have  taken 


lo8  Civil  and  Religious  Liberty. 

so  much  liberty,  I  will  take  the  liberty  to  kick  you  out ; "    and 
he  did  so  accordingly. 

Liberty  does  not  consist  in  every  man  doing  what  he  likes. 
It  consists  in  every  man — no  matter  who  he  is,  high  or  low — 
having  his  own  rights,  knowing  them,  and  being  protected  in 
the  exercise  of  them.  Let  every  man  know  that  the  law  gives 
certain  rights  to  do  certain  things  freely.  Let  every  one  under- 
stand thoroughly  what  these  rights  are,  and  that  the  law  will 
protect  him  in  them,  and  allow  no  one  to  violate  them.  The 
moment  the  law  defines  a  free  man's  rights — secures  them,  and 
proclaims  that  no  one  shall  interfere  with  them,  let  that  law  be 
set  on  high.  Let  every  man — ^judge,  lawyer,  merchant,  work- 
ingman — bow  down  and  acknowledge  the  omnipotence  of  that 
law.  Where  any  man  can  do  as  he  likes,  and  violate  the  law  with 
impunity,  there  is  no  liberty.  For  instance,  there  was  none  in 
England  when  the  king  had  two  wives  at  the  same  time. 
Wherever  a  king  can  violate  the  law  with  impunity,  there  is  no 
liberty.  Liberty  consists  in  the  consecration  of  every  man's 
rights.  Suppose  every  man  in  this  country  were  free  to  do  just 
what  he  liked,  you  would  be  afraid  to  go  out  of  the  house  with- 
out a  revolver.  I  would  rather  live  in  Russia,  where  one  is 
allowed  to  say  or  hear  Mass  every  morning,  and  to  go  a  certain 
distance  and  no  farther,  and  to  vote  once  a  year  for  mayor,  and 
nothing  else  ;  I  would  rather  live  there  with  only  three  rights, 
than  in  a  country  where  everybody  could  do  as  he  pleased. 
Civil  liberty  consists  in  ensuring  every  man's  rights  by  the  pro- 
tection of  law. 

I  ask  you  to  go  back  with  me  in  history,  till  we  see  how  far 
the  Catholic  Church  has  operated  upon  the  world  in  creating 
liberty  and  protecting  it.  I  assert  upon  the  authority  of 
Protestant  as  well  as  Catholic  historians  that  civil  liberty 
was  the  very  creation  of  Catholics.  It  is  not  easy  for  us  to  re- 
alize what  the  Church  has  done  for  the  world.  The  world  to- 
day has  in  a  great  measure  shaken  off  the  Church.  Fourteen 
hundred  years  ago  the  whole  civilized  world  was  overrun  by 
the  barbaric  nations  of  the  north  of  Europe — the  Goths,  Visi- 
goths, Huns,  and  Vandals.  They  came  from  the  deserts  of 
the  North  in  countless  thousands.  They  came  armed,  and 
•without  a  vestige  of  religion,  or  education,  or  civilization  upon 
them ;    they  swept  down  like  an   avalanche  upon  the  Roman 


Civil  and  Religious  Liberty.  109 

empire.  They  burned  cities,  shattered  museums  and  works  of 
art,  till  not  a  vestige  of  ancient  civilization,  government,  and 
law,  was  left  the  whole  world.  A  man  living  fourteen 
hundred  years  ago  in  Rome,  or  in  any  part  of  Italy  —  in 
Spain,  France,  Germany,  or  England  —  did  not  know  where 
to  go  for  protection  for  his  own  life,  or  that  of  his  family. 
All  was  destruction.  The  Pope  of  Rome  advanced  to 
meet  the  barbarous  hordes,  whose  hands  were  dripping  with 
the  blood  of  the  nations.  By  his  preaching  he  converted  many 
of  them  to  Christianity.  On  this  rude  material  the  Pope  and 
the  Church,  for  hundreds  of  years,  had  to  labor  before  they 
could  bring  into  these  men's  minds  ideas  of  law,  right,  justice, 
mutual  respect,  and  charity.  During  these  years  that  the 
Church  was  thus  laboring,  the  nations  began  to  form  under  their 
hands.  But  the  kings  were  rude  and  warlike,  with  powerful 
passions,  and  with  the  idea  that  they  were  supreme.  They  built 
their  feudal  castles,  the  ruins  of  which  still  remain.  Within 
these  castles  they  gathered  soldiers  ;  and  from  time  to  time 
they  swept  forth  over  the  whole  country  with  fire  and  sword, 
burning  peasants'  cabins,  violating  women,  and  carrying  the  peas- 
ants into  slavery.  There  was  no  security,  except  what  the 
Pope  of  Rome  afforded  by  his  mighty  agency,  the  Church. 
Then  we  find  the  Pope  gathering  together  the  people  in  little 
towns,  and  forming  associations  among  them  of  various  trades, 
and  trying  to  build  up  communities,  and  making  laws  excom- 
municating any  man  who  should  dare  enslave  any  of  these  free 
men.  Then  it  was  that  from  Rome  came  the  idea  that  every 
man  must  submit  to  Rome.  Then  it  Vas  that  kings  and  knights, 
as  well  as  people,  began  to  be  impressed  with  the  idea  that  right 
and  justice  did  not  lie  alone  in  the  strong  arm.  Then  those 
glorious  republics  of  northern  and  central  Italy  were  formed, 
and  that  glorious  Spanish  freedom  that  produced  such  men  as 
the  discoverers  of  the  New  World.  Then  it  was  that  every  one 
wishing  to  save  himself  from  fire  and  sword,  and  from  the  baron 
emerging  from  his  stronghold,  had  to  appeal  to  Rome  for  protec- 
tion. The  Pope  and  the  Church  evoked  order  out  of  chaos  by  the 
powerful  arm  of  the  law.  Whoever  violated  that  law,  the  Pope  in- 
stantly condemned.  The  Pope  taught  the  people  law  and  justice, 
and  that  it  was  their  duty  to  obey  that  law.  But  if,  on  the  other 
hand,  the  most  powerful  king  upon  earth  oppressed  his  people, 


1 10  Civil  and  Religious  Liberty. 

we  have  the  Pope  excommunicating  that  king  for  his  oppression. 
When  Philip  Augustus  of  France  wished  to  put  away  his  pure- 
minded  wife  and  take  some  other  woman,  the  Pope  of  Rome 
interfered  and  said  :  "  If  you  do  this — if  you  violate  the  law — 
if  you  do  what  you  would  not  allow  any  other  person  to  do — I 
am  above  you,  and  I  will  cut  you  off  from  the  Church."  Thus  it 
was  that  the  sanctity  of  the  marriage  relation  was  made  secure. 
Thus  it  was  that  woman,  not  able  herself  to  fight,  and  trusting  her 
life  to  the  fickle,  treacherous  heart  of  man,  was  protected  and 
secured  by  the  Church.  The  Church  told  man  that  whatever  other 
law  he  violated,  he  must  remain  faithful  to  the  woman  he  es- 
poused. Her  position  did  not  depend  upon  the  charms  of  this 
year  or  the  next — upon  the  varying  of  the  treacherous  sympa- 
thies of  her  husband.  She  knew  that  the  Church  had  set  its  seal 
upon  the  marriage  vows,  and  that  she  was  secure.  At  a  time 
when  more  than  one-half  the  world  enslaved  the  other  half,  the 
slave  was  without  sympathy,  and  looked  to  one  man  alone  who 
could  emancipate  him.  That  one  man  was  the  representative 
of  Christ — the  Pope  of  Rome — the  visible  Head  of  the  Church. 
So,  year  after  year,  new  laws  came  out  from  Rome — laws  made 
by  the  various  councils  ;  mitigating  greatly  the  severity  of  slav- 
ery, emancipating  here  and  there — now  one  family  and  now 
another  ;  and  yet  not  hurting  the  great  interests  of  society. 

What  is  the  spirit  of  Catholicity  in  regard  to  civil  liberty  ?  I 
do  not  speak  with  regard  to  America.  She  is  the  home  of  the 
oppressed  and  the  refuge  of  the  downtrodden.  She  was  born  into 
that  liberty  for  which  other  nations  have  had  to  toil  for  ages.  But 
among  the  nations  born  in  slavery,  men  have  to  seek  it  in  the 
battle-field.  Look  at  Germany,  the  other  day  dripping  with  the 
blood  of  generous  France,  and  carving  out  a  new  frontier  for 
France.  Not  one  of  these  old  nations  enjoys  constitutional  liber- 
ty. It  is  not  to  be  found  in  them.  It  lay  in  the  action  and  genius 
of  the  Catholic  Church.  England  boasts  of  her  constitution,  and 
tells  the  world  that  there  is  no  people  upon  the  face  of  the  earth 
with  so  many  rights ;  and  there  is  a  great  deal  of  truth  in  her 
boast.  If  the  liberties  of  Englishmen  and  their  constitutional 
rights  were  only  applied  to  Ireland — if  the  rights  there  were  as 
well  defined,  Ireland  would  not  be  where  she  is  to-day.  But  when 
we  go  back  eight  hundred  years,  we  find  not  one  vestige  of  the 
liberties  and  constitutional  privileges  which  England  now  enjoys. 


Civil  and  Religious  Liberty.  in 

The  first  concession  and  charter  of  rights  was  forced  from 
the  hands  of  an  unwilling  king  by  his  subjects — and  among 
them  were  the  Catholic  archbishops  and  bishops  of  the  land. 
When  the  prosperous  city  and  state  of  Florence  enjoyed  large 
liberties,  there  arose  a  man,  ambitious  and  powerful,  who  de- 
stroyed the  republic — made  himself  the  duke,  and  curtailed 
the  liberties  of  the  people.  When  that  man  lay  dying  he  sent 
for  a  Dominican  friar,  who  wore  a  habit  like  that  which  I  have 
on  to-night.  He  went  to  the  side  of  Cosmo  de  Medici.  Said 
the  dying  man,  "  What  am  I  to  do  to  gain  admission  to  heav- 
en ?  "  The  mighty  Savonarola  replied  :  "  You  must  restore  all 
the  lands  you  took  unjustly ;  you  must  make  compensation  to 
all  the  widows  and  orphans  made  so  by  your  unjust  laws." 
"Is  that  enough?"  asked  the  duke.  "No,"  said  the  friar,  "it 
is  not  enough.  You  must  give  back  to  Florence  the  liberties 
of  which  you  have  robbed  her." 

The  Catholic  Church  does  not  make  exceptions  to  monarchs 
or  empires.  She  is  able  to  live  under  a  despotism  ;  but  under 
the  most  grinding  despotism  she  is  able  to  vindicate  the  people 
and  the  freedom  of  intellect.  The  Catholic  Church  does  not  object 
to  any  form  of  government  ;  but  this  I  say,  that  the  freer  the 
people,  the  more  liberty  that  they  have,  the  more  does  she  flour- 
ish. Look  at  her  to-day  as  she  is  in  Germany — so  persecuted 
that  if  a  priest  is  to  preach  a  sermon  he  must  tell  the  government 
beforehand  just  what  he  is  going  to  say.  Look  at  her  in  Russia 
— persecuted  so  that  a  bishop  cannot  ordain  a  priest  without 
leave.  Look  at  her  in  England,  where  only  to-day  the  chains 
are  falling  from  her  hands.  Look  at  her  in  America — this  mag- 
nificent, this  godly  Catholic  Church,  which  alone  comes  looming 
up  before  us  in  all  the  grandeur  and  awfulness  of  her  majesty, 
and  puts  forth  the  Gospel  of  Truth  unchanged  and  unchanging ; 
whose  sacramental  grace,  pure  and  purifying,  points  in  unity 
to  Christ,  as  if  this  great  Church  were  but  one  man.  Compare 
her  with  the  multitude  of  sects  in  the  land.  Shall  we  not  con- 
clude that  America  can  only  be  Catholic ;  because  there  is  no 
other  religion  equivalent  to  her  greatness  ;  and  that  in  a  few 
years  it  will  shape  the  world  and  shape  the  destinies  of 
all !  America  is  but  a  child ;  fair-crowned  with  civil  and 
religious  liberty,  she  is  growing  day  by  day,  and  in 
half  a   century   will  overshadow    this   western   world.      And, 


112 


Civil  and  Religious  Liberty. 


thanks  to  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost,  she  is  growing 
in  Catholicity.  Irish  hearts  are  captivated  with  her  freedom  ; 
and  wherever  Ireland  goes  it  is  her  destiny  and  glory  that  the 
Catholic  Church  must  grow.  Therefore  it  is  that,  looking  into 
the  mighty  future,  I  see  before  me,  among  the  nations,  one,  the 
greatest  and  mightiest  of  all — great  in  her  material  strength — 
great  in  the  unfolding  power  of  her  riches — great  in  the  energy 
of  her  youth — great  in  the  magnificent  boon  of  liberty.  I  see 
many  crowns  upon  thy  brow,  Columbia,  but  among  them  all, 
and  outshining  all,  I  see  upon  thy  brow  the  crown  of  Catholicity  ; 
and,  bending  down,  I  say  from  out  my  Irish  heart  and  soul — 
All  hail ! 


OUR  CATHOLIC  YOUNG  MEN,  AS 
CHILDREN  OF  THE  CHURCH  AND 
CITIZENS  OF  THE  REPUBLIC. 


[Delivered  in  the  Academy  of  Music,  Brooklyn,  under  the  auspices  of  the  Young 
Men's  Catholic  Association  attached  to  St.  James's  Cathedral,  Sunday,  Dec.  15th, 
1872.] 

ADIES  AND  Gentlemen:  I  have  had  the  honor,  on 
other  occasions,  to  stand  here,  and  to  address  you.  I 
have  had  the  honor  of  addressing  audiences  in  various 
iil  parts  of  this  mighty  country.  But,  I  confess  to  you 
that,  not  since  I  arrived  in  America,  have  I  had  a  subject  so 
important,  so  interesting,  or  so  pleasing  to  myself,  as  that  which 
I  propose  for  your  consideration  this  evening.  And  it  is,  "  The 
Catholic  Young  Man,  considered  as  a  Child  of  the  Church  and 
a  Citizen  of  the  State."  First  of  all,  my  dear  friends,  any  man 
who  reflects  upon  the  position  of  the  world,  and  the  state  of 
society  to-day,  must  immediately  see  that  all  the  evils  that 
afflict  us — all  the  misery  that  torments  our  lives,  all  the  confu- 
sion and  disruption  that  surround  us,  all  the  world  over,  comes 
from  some  imperfect  organization,  or  from  some  evil  that  oper- 
ates on  our  youth.  The  ancient  pagan  philosopher  said  that, 
although  age  was  honorable,  youth  was  still  more  honorable. 
^'■Maxima  debitur puero  reverential'  was  the  word  of  the  ancient 
sage — The  greatest  honor,  the  greatest  reverence  is  due  to  the 
young  man.  And  why?  Because,  as  it  is  in  nature,  so  it  is  in 
the  life  of  man.  There  are  certain  seasons  that  mark  the  life 
of  every  man.  The  most  important  season  in  the  year  is  the 
Spring,  when  the  ground  is  opened  up,  ploughed,  harrowed, 
and  cleaned.  Then,  the  farmer  takes  his  seed  and  throws  it 
into  the  bountiful  earth,  and  closes  the  earth  upon  it,  and  waits 
in  quiet  the  nursing  of  the  Summer,  and  the  maturity  of  the 

8 


1 14  Our  Catholic  Young  Men. 

Autumn.  But,  well  the  agriculturist  knows  that,  although  he 
looks  forward,  full  of  hope,  the  fulfillment  of  his  hopes  depends 
upon  his  own  work  in  the  Spring  season.  Well  he  knows  that, 
if  he  expects  a  full  field,  it  is  because  he  has  scattered  the  seed 
with  no  sparing  or  miserly  hand.  Well  he  knows  that,  if  he 
expects  a  harvest  of  generous,  pure,  and  fruitful  issue,  it  all  de- 
pends upon  the  nature  of  the  seed  which  he  cast  into  the  bosom 
of  the  earth  in  the  early  Spring  of  the  year.  If  he  took  bad 
seed,  if  he  took  indifferent  seed,  he  cannot  expect  a  ripe  abun- 
dance, or  rich  or  precious  harvest.  If  he  has  not  prepared  his 
ground  properly — if  he  has  neglected  the  work  of  the  Spring, 
the  reaction  comes  upon  him  months  after  he  had  labored  in- 
differently, and  consequently  in  vain,  when  he  beholds  the 
weeds  springing  up,  choking  his  corn,  until  he  sees  the  scanty 
harvest,  scarcely  worth  the  labor  of  the  sickle.  He  has  only 
to  recall  the  past,  with  shame  and  sorrow,  and  to  say :  "  When 
I  planted,  when  I  ploughed,  when  I  did  the  Spring  work,  I  neg- 
lected my  duty ;  and  now  I  behold  the  result." 

As  it  is  with  nature,  so  it  is  with  men.  Youth  is  the  Spring- 
itime  of  life  ;  it  is  the  time  of  sowing  ;  it  is  the  time  of  plough- 
ing; it  is  the  time  for  preparing  the  soil  ;  and  it  is  the  time 
when  cultivation  determines  what  the  Summer  of  man's  man- 
:hood  shall  be  ;  and,  above  all,  what  he  shall  garner  in  the  Au- 
tumn of  his  life,  when  he  is  bending  down  to  the  Winter  of 
extreme  old  age,  when  every  fruit  of  his  early  habits  of  life  be- 
igins  to  ripen  ;  when  the  problem  of  his  life  is  solved  ; — for  the 
old  man  tells  us  what  manner  of  man  the  youth  has  been.  It 
■is  for  us  the  most  precious  and  important  time  of  man's  life  ; 
and  it  is  also  the  time  when  the  enemy  of  our  humanity,  the 
enemy  of  our  nature,  as  well  as  of  our  supernatural  gift  of  grace, 
lies  in  wait  to  poison  the  fountain-head  of  life,  to  poison  the 
spring,  to  send  forth  from  a  polluted,  degraded,  and  defiled 
youth  those  streams  of  impurity  and  of  error  and  of  perversity 
that  spoil  all  the  purposes  of  man's  life,  and  that  bring  down 
his  gray  hairs,  in  old  age,  in  sin  as  well  as  in  sorrow,  to  a  dis- 
honored grave. 

Hence  it  is  that  we  behold  and  note,  by  our  own  sad  expe- 
rience, that  not  only  are  the  passions  strongest  in  youth,  but 
also,  in  youth,  every  snare  that  hell  can  invent  is  laid  before 
the  young  man,  to  poison  his  mind  by  error^  and  to  pollute  and 


Our  Catholic   Young  Men.  115 

destroy  his  heart  by  sin.  And  yet,  upon  that  young  man  de- 
pend all  the  hopes  of  the  Church  of  God,  and  all  the  hopes  and 
prospects  of  human  society,  or  for  the  State,  in  this  world. 

Every  man  born  into  this  world,  my  friends,  comes   into  it  as 
a  creature  of  God,  and  also  as  a  member  of  society.     Almighty 
God  makes  his  first  claim  upon  the  youth  through  the  Church. 
Society  demands  of  him  his  duties  as  a  man.     Therefore,  we 
can  consider,  and  we  must  consider,  the  young  man  as  a  child 
of  the    Church,   and  a  citizen  of  the  State.     One  relation   is 
scarcely  inferior  to  the  other.     So  much  do  man's  duties,  as  a 
citizen  of  the  State,  enter  into  his  duties  as  a  child  of  God,  that 
he  cannot  fulfill  the  one  without  accomplishing  the  other.     No 
man  can  be  a  good  citizen  of  the  State  unless  he  be  a  true  child 
of  God,  and  a  true  son  of  the  Church  of  God.     No  man,  on  the 
other  hand,  can  be  a  true  son  of  the  Church — consequently  a 
child  of  God — without  being  a  magnificent  citizen  of  the  State 
which  has  the  honor  and  glory  to  possess  him.     What  does  the 
Church  demand  ?     What  does  the  State  demand  of  every  man 
amongst  us?    My  friends,  I  take  it  for  granted  that  I  am  speak- 
ing to  Catholics.     And  I   also  know  that  I  have  the  honor  to 
address  American  citizens.     On   other  occasions,  and  on  other 
topics,  I  have  loved — as  I  would  love  to-night,  if  it  were  within 
the  range  of  the  subject  before  me — to  address  you,  and  to  re- 
mind you   of  the  land   of  your  fathers.     I  know,  by  your  re- 
sponse, that  I  would  go  nearer  to  your  hearts  by  speaking  to 
you  of  the  venerable  green  old  island  from  which  the  most  of 
us  have  sprung.    But  you  must  remember  that,  in  this  land,  you 
have  entered  into  the  grand  position  of  American  citizens ;  that 
this  land  is  yours ;  that  America,  in  her  generosity,  and  in  the 
grandeur   of  her  heart,   opens  herself  up  to  every  exile  and 
stricken  man  that  lands  upon  her  soil,  and  says :  "  Whatever 
you  were  at  home,  whatever  you  were  in  the  traditions  of  your 
people's  history — the  moment  you  land  upon  Columbia's  soil, 
you  are  a  freeman,  destined  for  freedom  ;  and,  if  you  have  only 
intelligence  and  virtue,  destined  to  possess  wealth,  influence, 
power,  and  glory,  in  this  magnificent  land  to  which  you  have 
come."     I  ask  you,  therefore,  to  permit  me  to  address  you  en- 
tirely as  American  citizens,  premising,  for  your  consolation,  and 
certainly  for  mine,   that  it  is  as  American   citizens  that    the 
mother-land  of  Ireland  regards  you.     It  is  as  American  citizens 


ii6  Our  Catholic   Young  Men. 

that  she  looks  to  you,  one  day,  to  lift  her  drooping  head,  and 
to  place  upon  that  head  its  ancient  crown  of  national  glory. 

You  have  then,  my  friends,  to  remember  that,  as  children  of 
the  Church,  your  relations  have  not  changed  from  what  your 
fathers  were  before  you,  in  the  ancient  land  of  Ireland.  The 
Catholic  is  the  same  all  the  world  over ;  no  matter  what  sun 
shines  on  him ;  no  matter  what  trees  wave  over  his  head  ;  no 
matter  what  climate  of  snow  or  sunshine  may  be  his  portion, 
the  Catholic  man  is  the  same,  all  the  world  over.  And  not  only 
this,  but  the  Catholic  man  is  the  same  in  all  ages,  and  in  all 
things.  Every  man  amongst  us,  who  has  the  honor  and  privi- 
lege, and  the  grace  of  being  a  son  of  the  Church,  shares  in  the 
Catholicity,  as  to  space,  and  as  to  time,  and  as  to  sanctity, 
af  his  great  mother.  And,  therefore,  our  duties  in  America, 
as  Catholics,  and  sons  of  the  Church,  are  precisely  the  same  as 
what  they  were  in  Ireland  in  the  olden  time ; — as  what  they 
shall  be  in  a  thousand  years  to  come,  if,  indeed,  this  world  of 
ours  shall  live  so  long.  But,  whilst  your  duties — the  duties  of 
American  youth,  as  sons  of  the  Church — remain  the  same,  your 
duties  have  changed  somewhat  as  American  citizens.  There- 
fore, I  ask  you  to  consider,  first,  what  it  is  that  the  Church  de- 
mands of  her  youth,  and  what  it  is  that  this  mighty  State  de- 
mands of  her  citizens.  The  Church  demands  of  her  youth,  as 
of  her  manhood  and  aged,  first  of  all,  the  virtue  of  divine  faith 
— believing  in  God,  not  in  a  vain,  doubting,  erratic  form  of 
mind,  but  believing  in  Almighty  God,  and  in  all  that  He  has 
revealed  through  the  mouth  and  in  the  authority  of  the  Holy 
Church  which  He  has  established,  which  He  founded  upon 
earth,  and  of  which  He  declared — "  the  gates  of  hell  shall 
never  prevail  against  her;  "  but  which  He  has  erected  in  majes- 
ty, and  in  the  beauty  of  holiness,  as  His  own  spouse  and  bride 
forever;  the  faith,  profound  and  solid  as  the  rock  on  which 
Jesus  Christ  built  His  Church ;  the  faith,  enlightened,  intellec- 
tual, and  powerful  in  the  strength  of  its  intelligence,  as  the 
mind  with  which  God  endowed  His  Church ;  the  faith,  tender, 
sympathetic  ;  siding  through  weal  and  through  woe,  with  a 
strong,  yet  tender,  sympathy,  with  every  interest  that  touches 
the  Church  of  God,  and  making  the  interest  of  His  holy  religion 
the  weightiest  interest  of  his  heart.  This  is  the  first  duty  that 
God  demands  of  our  youth. 


Our  Catholic  Young  Men.  1 1 7 

The  second  duty  that  the  Church  demands  of  her  children — 
or  rather  that  God  demands  of  His  sons — is  purity  of  life — the 
preservation  of  that  integrity  of  manhood,  which,  untainted  in 
its  source,  unpolluted  in  the  fountain-head,  the  spring  of  life, 
flows  strongly  and  steadily,  in  the  full  tide  of  a  manhood  that 
has  never  known  the  touch  of  that  defiling  evil  which  is  the 
great  curse  of  the  world  in  this  our  day.  Oh !  my  friends,  if 
ever  there  was  a  time  demanding  purity  of  life,  and,  at  the  same 
time,  cursed  with  the  terrible  curse  of  impurity,  that  time  is  the 
glorious,  and  yet  most  unhappy,  nineteenth  century,  in  which 
we  live.  It  is  all  very  well  for  us,  in  this  our  age,  to  speak  of 
our  material  advancement  and  progress.  We  are  proud  of  our 
railways,  annihilating  space  on  land  ;  of  our  telegraphic  wires, 
bending  the  lightning  of  heaven  and  making  it  subserve  the 
purposes  of  man  ;  of  our  ocean  steamers,  crossing  the  mighty 
ocean  with  perfect  security.  It  is  all  very  well  for  us  to  glance 
on  this  and  say,  Never  was  there  a  time  since  the  world  was 
created,  when  the  energies  and  intellectuality  of  man  so  asserted 
themselves  over  the  material  creation,  as  in  this  our  day.  I 
acknowledge  it.  I  envy  not  the  nineteenth  century.  I  am  a 
child  of  my  age,  and  I  glory  in  the  triumphs  of  my  age.  But, 
side  by  side  with  all  that  material  progress,  with  all  that  ad- 
vancement of  civilization,  crime  comes  to  light  of  which  our 
fathers,  in  their  simplicity,  knew  nothing — a  corrupting,  devour- 
ing, devastating  impurity  has  seized  upon  the  manhood  of  this 
nineteenth  century,  and  threatens  the  nations  with  destruction 
from  themselves,  even  if  that  destruction  does  not  come  from 
God,  as  it  came  upon  the  nations  of  the  olden  time.  The 
"  social  evil,"  as  it  is  called — laxity  of  life,  extravagance  in  all 
expenses — the  awful,  hideous  crimes  that  are  revealed  in  our 
courts  of  justice  from  time  to  time  ;  the  decimation  of  the  na- 
tions, and  the  decrease  of  population  ;  the  delicacy  of  constitu- 
tion, the  shortness  of  life,  the  disinvigorating  of  our  manhood, 
all  these  things,  oh !  my  friends,  tell  us  that,  if  we  live  in  an 
intellectual  age,  if  we  live  in  a  grand  age,  we  have  also  the  mis- 
fortune to  live  in  an  age  when  the  very  atmosphere  is  impreg- 
nated with  the  basest  and  most  destructive  of  sins.  Now,  the 
Church  of  God  demands  of  her  children  purity  of  life — purity 
of  youth,  and  integrity  of  manhood.  And,  here,  the  world  of 
to-day  fails  to  meet  the  Church,  to  supply  and  comply  with  her 


ii8  Our  Catholic   Young  Men. 

demands.  In  the  olden  times,  we  read  that  the  aged  man, 
with  sixty  or  seventy  years  upon  his  head,  was  still  able  to 
grasp  his  spear,  to  go  out  and  do  battle  for  a  noble  cause,  and 
to  strike  a  buffet  that  bore  with  it  all  the  manly  power  and 
strength  of  youth  in  his  aged  arm.  To-day  there  is  no  such 
thing.  In  the  olden  time  men  brought  down  with  them  unim- 
paired, even  to  the  very  verge  of  the  grave,  all  their  intellectual 
faculties,  ripened  and  matured  into  the  wisdom  of  experience, 
yet  retaining  all  the  freshness  and  imaginativeness  of  youth. 
To-day,  in  this  our  day,  the  poet  sings — the  poet,  not  yet  forty 
years  of  age  when  death  removed  him,  quite  a  young  man — one 
of  the  leading  geniuses  of  our  age,  a  man  blessed  by  Almighty 
God  with  every  gift  of  fortune,  and  every  endowment  of  highest 
intelligence — he  writes,  before  he  dies,  these  terrible  lines : 

"  My  life  is  in  the  yellow  leaf; 

The  fruit,  the  flower  of  love  are  gone  ; 
The  worm,  the  canker  and  the  grief 
Are  mine  alone  !  " 

Oh  God!  what  language  for  a  young  man — his  manhood  ex- 
hausted, his  vital  energies  departed — premature  old  age  coming 
upon  him,  not  from  the  God  of  nature,  but  from  hell ;  and  he 
writes  these  lines ! 

Another  poet  of  our  age — our  own  poet — looks  back  in  the 
spirit  of  the  age  in  which  he  lives — looks  back  upon  the  golden 
days  of  youth,  when  the  ship  of  his  life  set  forth  upon  the  jour- 
ney of  years,  not  upon  the  sea  of  purity,  or  self-restraint,  or 
manliness,  which  would  have  borne  him  along  without  shipwreck 
until  he  entered  the  golden  gates  of  the  desired  haven.  No, 
but  he  looks  back  upon  the  ship  of  life  stranded  and  wrecked  : 

"  I  saw  from  the  beach,  when  the  morning  was  shining, 

A  barque  o'er  the  waters  move  gloriously  on, 
I  came  when  the  sun  o'er  that  beach  was  declining  ; 

The  barque  was  still  there,  but  the  waters  were  gone. 
And  such  is  the  fate  of  our  life's  early  promise. 

So  passing  the  Spring-tide  of  joy  we  have  known  ; 
Each  wave  that  we  danced  on  at  morning,  ebbs  from  us  ; 

And  leaves  us  at  eve,  on  the  bleak  shore  alone  ! " 

Why  should  those  waves  ebb  from  him?  Why  should  the 
barque  be  there  and  the  waters  be  gone?  Why  should  every 
purpose  of  that  glorious  sailing  forth  from  the  portals  of  youth 


Our  Catholic   Young  Men.  119 

be  destroyed  and  wrecked  ?  Oh  !  why,  but  that  he  mistook  the 
ocean  upon  which  he  set  sail ;  and,  instead  of  spreading  his  sails 
upon  the  waters  of  purity,  of  integrity,  and  of  manhood,  and 
bending  his  prow  heavenward  through  every  path  of  human 
honor,  usefulness,  and  glory,  he  preferred  to  move  and  sail  upon 
the  shifting  waters  of  sin,  of  pleasure,  and  of  pollution,  which 
receded  from  him  and  left  him  shipwrecked  in  the  mid-day  of 
his  life. 

These  are  the  two  great  demands  of  the  Church — faith  and 
purity.  Remember,  my  friends,  I  am  not  speaking  to  you  of  a 
faith  that  contents  itself  merely  with  saying,  "  I  am  a  Catholic  ; 
I  go  to  Mass  on  Sunday,  and  I  never  deny  the  faith  ;  and 
there  is  an  end  of  it."  This  is  not  the  faith  the  Church  de- 
mands in  this  our  own  age.  We  live  in  an  age  of  religious  in- 
difference. We  live  in  an  age  when  any  religious  spirit  that 
exists  outside  the  Church  manifests  itself  only  in  opposition  to 
the  Church.  We  live  in  an  age  that  tries  to  prove  that  the 
Catholic  Church  means  the  poisoning  of  the  moral  and  the  in- 
tellectual man.  Do  you  know  what  the  description  of  the 
Catholic  religion  is,  as  given  by  this  Mr.  Froude,  that  was  lec- 
turing here  the  other  night  ?  "  The  Catholic  Church  and  the 
Catholic  religion,"  says  this  man,  "  is  the  destruction  of  all 
moral  consciousness  in  man.  It  is  a  kind  of  compact  that  men 
make  with  the  priest  to  enjoy  their  pleasures  and  commit  sin, 
and  go  to  him  from  time  to  time,  to  make  a  private  arrange- 
ment to  settle  the  whole  business."  It  is,  to  use  his  own 
words,  a  kind  of  "hocus  pocus,"  supposed  to  be  invented  by 
Almighty  God  in  order  to  cheat  the  devil — to  let  men  live  for 
their  pleasures,  for  their  impurities,  for  their  abominations,  and 
for  their  sin,  and  yet  to  escape  the  claws  of  the  devil  in  the  end. 
Such  is  Mr.  Froude's  idea  of  the  Catholic  Church.  Remember, 
my  friends,  that  if  Mr.  Froude  stood  alone  and  cried  out  this 
with  stentorian  voice,  I  would  not  mind  him  ;  but  Mr.  Froude 
represents,  in  this  respect,  the  intelligence  and  the  intellect  of 
our  day  which  is  outside  of  the  Catholic  Church.  Consequently, 
if  ever  there  was  a  time  when  the  Church  of  God  demands  the 
earnest  faith  of  her  children  it  is  in  this  our  day,  in  order  that 
every  Catholic  man  in  the  world,  may,  by  his  life,  by  his  ear- 
nestness, by  his  religiousness,  and  by  his  faith  in  all  its  strength 
and  purity,  give  the  lie  to  Mr.  Froude  and  to  such  as  he.     It  is 


120  Our  Catholic   Young  Men. 

not  the  man,  therefore,  who  contents  himself  with  a  mere  pro- 
fession of  the  Catholic  religion,  who  allows  his  neighbor  to  say 
of  him  with  truth  :  "  That  man  says  he  is  a  Catholic,  but  look 
at  him  ;  he  drinks — he  is  a  drunken  fellow,  a  bad  father,  a  bad 
husband  ;  he  is  never  seen  going  to  the  priest  of  his  own  re- 
ligion that  he  seems  so  proud  of;  we  never  see  him  at  con- 
fession or  communion  ;  if  there  is  any  question  brought  up  in 
which  the  interests  of  the  Catholic  Church  are  concerned,  he  is 
quite  indifferent  to  either  side,  and  just  as  ready  to  take  the 
Protestant  side  as  the  Catholic.  If  the  Pope  or  the  Church  is 
in  trouble  he  does  not  concern  himself.  He  cares  more  about 
a  little,  petty  squabble  about  the  election  of  a  beadle  or  an 
Alderman  than  the  interests  of  the  Church  he  calls  his  mother." 
Oh  !  it  is  not  such  Catholics  we  want  to-day,  my  dear  friends ; 
it  is  Catholics  that  are  earnest  in  their  faith,  earnest  in  their 
principles,  earnest  in  their  religion,  and,  I  will  add,  it  is  Cath- 
olics that  are  ready,  if  ever  God  should  please  to  call  upon  them, 
to  go  out  and  strike  a  blow,  like  men,  for  the  Church,  their  mother, 
and  for  the  Pope,  who  is  the  Head  of  that  Church. 

The  Church  of  God  demands  men  of  earnest  faith,  men  of 
pure  and  practical  lives.  Now,  what  does  the  State  demand? 
Well,  my  friends,  I  confess  to  you  that  since  I  came  to  this  land 
of  America,  the  idea  that  has  been  most  constantly  before  my 
mind  was  the  study  of  American  society  to-day,  of  the  future 
that  is  before  this  mighty  land,  and  of  how  we  Catholics,  most 
of  us  of  Irish  blood  and  Irish  descent,  are  to  rise  to  the  demands 
of  the  land  that  has  fathered  us,  and  to  meet  that  glorious 
future  that  is  before  the  citizens  of  America.  Here  you  have  a 
country  surpassing  not  only  any  other  continent,  but  surpass- 
ing all  the  rest  of  the  world  in  its  material  resources.  There 
is  more  gold  and  silver  in  America  than  there  is  in  all 
the  rest  of  the  world  that  God  made.  There  is  more 
available  arable  land  in  America  ready  for  the  hand  of  the 
laborer,  than  there  is  in  all  Europe  and  Asia.  There  is  more 
wealth  in  America — untold  wealth  that  will  yet  be  developed — 
than  there  is  in  all  the  rest  of  the  world.  There  is  more  energy 
and  determination  in  America,  that  will  work  that  wealth  out 
and  develop  it,  than  there  has  been  in  all  the  rest  of  the  world 
from  the  beginning  of  its  history  to  the  present  time.  But 
there  is  another  thing  in  America  far  more  glorious  than  all 
these.     There  is,  presiding  over  the  councils  of  this  mighty 


Our  Catholic   Young  Men.  I2I 

nation,  governing  its  action  in  its  public  policy  towards  its  own 
citizens  and  towards  foreign  States,  that  which  has  never  been 
allowed  to  sit  at  the  council-board  of  the  old  countries,  namely, 
the  genius  and  the  angel  of  civil  and  religious  liberty.  In  this 
land  there  is  no  class  aristocracy.  The  accident  of  birth,  in  the 
ancient  countries,  determines  a  man's  position  in  society.  It  may 
be  that  the  Almighty  God  never  intended  him  to  have  that  posi- 
tion in  society.  For  instance,  two  children  are  born  on  the  same 
day,  of  two  mothers.  One  is  born  in  a  cabin  in  Ireland — the 
child  of  a  holy  and  a  virtuous  mother — and  God  has  given  to  that 
child  all  the  elements  of  greatness  for  this  world  and  for  the 
next.  He  has  given  to  that  infant  a  gift  of  genius  reserved  for 
him  amongst  all  the  children  of  men.  Such  a  child  was  John 
Philpot  Curran.  That  child  grows  ;  he  receives  education  ; 
his  intellect  develops  ;  the  nations  are  astonished  ;  the  world 
is  electrified  by  the  powers  and  gifts  that  God  gave  to  that  hum- 
ble child.  The  child  climbs  the  social  ladder,  to  a  certain  point, 
and  at  that  certain  point  an  angel,  certainly  not  of  heaven, 
meets  him  and  says,  "  Stop  !  Another  step  would  bring  you 
into  a  privileged  class,  which,  with  all  your  genius  and  all  your 
power,  you  must  never  attempt  to  enter."  On  the  same  day 
another  child  is  born,  with  a  narrow  head,  a  low,  retreating 
forehead  ;  the  child,  perhaps,  of  vicious  parents — he  comes  into 
this  world  a  born  booby  ;  but  his  father  happens  to  be  a  lord 
and  his  mother  a  lady.  All  the  honors,  all  the  influence,  all 
the  government  and  the  power  of  the  state  are  the  in- 
heritance of  that  booby  child,  because  he  happened  to  be 
born  in  a  certain  circle  ;  and  though  he  brings  neither  virtue, 
intelligence,  nor  any  gift  of  God  or  man,  he  is  still,  by  the 
adventitious  circumstance  of  his  birth,  placed  so  high,  that  his 
very  foot  is  higher  than  the  head  of  the  child  of  grace,  of  genius, 
and  of  promise.  Now,  there  is  no  such  thing  as  this  in  America. 
Every  man  in  America  is  born  equal.  I  am  not  speaking  from 
the  pulpit  here  to-night.  I  am  speaking  from  the  platform,  and 
not  so  much  as  a  priest  as  ^  man  addressing  the  intellects  of  his 
fellow-men.  I  proclaim  here,  as  far  as  I  am  concerned,  individ- 
ually, I  admire  that  equality,  and  I  am  a  republican  in  every 
drop  of  blood  that  is  in  my  veins.  America,  therefore,  not  per- 
mitting the  genius,  and  the  power,  and  the  virtue  of  the  hum- 
blest of  her  citizens  to  be  hampered,  or  fettered,  or  repressed 


122  Our  Catholic   Young  Men. 

by  any  of  these  class  distinctions — every  man  in  the  land  being 
born  equal — the  great  question  now  comes,  What  is  the  first 
thing  America  demands  of  her  sons  ?  I  answer,  the  very  first 
thing  America  demands  of  her  citizens  is  genius,  intelligence, 
and  intellect.  Whatever  chance  the  booby  has  in  any  other 
land,  he  has  not  a  chance  in  America.  Did  any  of  you  ever  hear 
of  "  Lord  Dundreary  ?  " — a  born  booby,  a  born  fool.  All  in  the 
world  he  knows  how  to  do  is  to  curl  his  hair,  and  to  pull  out 
his  whiskers.  And  yet,  my  friends,  he  gets  on  remarkably  well  for 
a  fool,  because  he  happens  to  be  a  lord.  Now,  in  America,  Lord 
Dundreary  would  go  to  the  wall  and  starve,  and  some  hard- 
headed,  keen,  intelligent  Irish  boy  would  come  to  the  front, 
and  Lord  Dundreary  would  be  nowhere  in  the  race.  The 
first  demand,  therefore,  America  makes  on  her  citizens,  is  intel- 
lect. Bring  to  whatever  state  of  life — whatever  occupation  you 
have  chosen  for  yourselves — ripeness  of  intellect,  keenness  of 
apprehension,  sharpness,  combined  with  the  strictest  honesty, 
and  you  have  the  main  elements  of  success  in  this  mighty  nation 
that  recognizes  only  the  aristocracy  of  genius  and  of  virtue. 
The  next  thing  that  America  demands  of  her  citizens  is  energy 
— strength  of  manhood.  She  imposes,  more  than  any  other 
country  in  the  world,  heavy  duties  upon  her  citizens.  I  have 
been  in  many  lands,  my  dear  friends,  and  I  speak  from  experi- 
ence. I  have  seen  men  in  Italy,  in  the  south  of  France,  and 
elsewhere,  work  for  an  hour  or  so  in  the  day,  and  then  go  to  the 
coffee  rooms,  and  spend  the  rest  of  the  day  with  cigars  and  cof- 
fee and  playing  billiards.  Now,  tell  me,  if  a  man  in  New  York 
should  attend  to  business  in  this  way — I  should  like  to  know 
where  he  would  be  at  the  end  of  the  year.  America  says  : 
"  If  you  want  a  reward  from  me  and  a  place  of  prominence  in 
my  citizenship,  you  must  be  a  working  man,  and,  consequently, 
you  must  bring  to  whatever  state  of  life  you  are  called,  or 
whatever  profession  you  are  engaged  in,  not  only  a  bright,  well- 
informed  intelligence,  but  must  also  bring  a  keen,  energetic, 
determined  will  and  a  strong  arm  to  your  work."  And  it  is  a 
comfort,  my  friends,  to  work  in  such  a  land  as  this,  for  it  is  not 
like  the  old  countries.  I  remember  once,  at  a  review  of  the 
French  troops,  seeing  a  poor  little  drummer  boy  running  up  and 
down  all  day,  beating  his  drum  wherever  he  was  sent  to,  in 
order  to  call  the  troops  together ;    and  when  be  came  in  ex- 


Our  Catholic   Young  Men.  123 

hausted  in  the  evening,  I  said  to  him,  "  Well,  have  you  enjoyed 
yourself  to-day  ?  "  "  Eh  !  ma  foi  !  "  answered  he,  "  it  was  a  hard 
day  for  two  sous  " — two  cents !  After  he  had  paid  for  his  cloth- 
ing and  victuals,  he  had  just  two  cents  coming  to  him.  In  the 
olden  time  in  Ireland — times  that  I  remember — a  strong  man 
worked  all  day — say,  cutting  turf — up  to  his  knees  in  water, 
working  hard — bent  down — or,  if  you  will,  reaping  corn,  and 
bent  to  the  sickle  all  day,  and  in  the  evening  he  got  the  mag- 
nificent remuneration  of  from  sixpence  to  eightpence.  There 
was  nothing  to  work  for — there  was  nothing  worth  a  man's 
head,  or  hand,  or  heart,  in  such  a  miserable  pittance  as  this. 
Not  so  America.  She  says  to  her  citizens:  "  I  pay  generously, 
I  remunerate  copiously  and  in  proportion  to  the  amount  of  in- 
tellect, strength,  knowledge,  and  manhood  you  bring  to  me." 

Now,  my  dear  friends,  we  come  to  the  question  on  which  I 
have  come  here  to  address  you  this  evening.  If  the  youth  of  a 
man  be  the  spring-time  of  his  life  ;  if  in  youth  the  question  must 
be  determined  and  the  problem  solved  whether  that  man  is  to 
be  what  the  Church  of  God  demands  of  a  son,  and  what  Amer- 
ica demands  of  a  citizen  :  the  very  first  thing  that  is  necessary  is 
to  take  thought,  and  careful  thought,  to  provide  for  that  man's 
youth,  that  he  may  be  enabled  to  comply  with  every  demand 
of  the  Church  of  God,  on  the  one  hand,  and  of  the  glorious 
country,  on  the  other.  It  is  necessary,  therefore,  to  bring  him 
under  the  influence  of  the  Church,  and  under  the  influence  of 
the  requirements  of  the  State.  Neglect  that  youth,  send  him 
out  in  his  twelfth  or  fourteenth  year  to  some  business,  imper- 
fect, uninstructed,  having  only  the  rudiments  of  knowledge,  and 
having  only  the  knowledge  of  his  catechism,  or  the  elements  of 
Christian  duties,  and  what  is  the  consequence?  The  business 
hours  are  over  at  four,  five,  six,  or  seven  o'clock  in  the  evening. 
A  young  man  cannot  live  without  recreation.  God  has  so 
formed  him  that  he  cannot  live  without  recreation  ;  it  is  as  ne- 
cessary for  the  young  man  to  seek  and  to  find  relaxation  as  it  is 
for  the  thirsty  or  the  hungry  man  to  look  for  food  or  for  drink, 
wherewith  to  refresh  himself.  That  relaxation  or  amusement  is 
provided  by  the  devil,  and  it  is  provided  by  Almighty  God,  by 
His  Church ;  the  devil  provides  for  the  young  man  a  relaxation 
of  pleasures  and  evil  associations,  and  if  he  only  turns  to  them, 
the  springs  of  his  life  are  poisoned  ;    the  spring-time  of  his  life 


124  Our  Catholic  Young  Men. 

is  destroyed  ;  no  bloom  of  summer  shall  ever  come  upon  the 
purity  and  strength  of  his  manhood ;  no  blessing  shall  ever  hal- 
low his  aged  head  as  he  bends  towards  the  grave.  How  is  this 
that  the  devil  has  such  power  ?  He  has  this  power,  first 
of  all,  through  evil  associations ;  secondly,  he  has  the 
power  through  the  unruly  passions  in  the  bosom  and  the  blocd 
of  every  man.  Through  association  of  evil  minds  he  has  the 
power.  Thus  the  young  man  may  fall  into  bad  company.  He 
may  associate  with  those  who  speak  to  him  words  he  hears  for 
the  first  time  with  astonishment ;  who  may  seek  to  teach  him  ac- 
tions that,  at  first,  he  recoils  from  with  the  instinctive  purity  and 
strength  of  a  spirit  yet  unstained  and  untainted  by  sin.  If  he 
has  nowhere  to  fly  from  these  evil  associations,  the  very  neces- 
sity will  oblige  him  to  plunge  into  them  and  lose  his  soul,  and 
the  hope  and  promise  of  his  life ;  the  passions  of  his  youth 
developing  before  his  reason  had  obtained  the  mastery  ;  while, 
as  yet,  he  knows  not  the  nature,  and,  certainly,  not  the  conse- 
quences of  crime;  but  its  taste  is  sweet  to  his  young  lips,  and 
he  turns,  ravening,  thirsting,  to  drink  of  the  polluted  stream 
that  flows  before  him,  and,  in  the  drinking,  to  poison  his  soul 
and  destroy  himself.  Oh  !  how  many  there  are  who  have  al- 
ready been  ruined  because  they  have  not  been  let  alone ;  be- 
cause evil  associations  have  surrounded  them.  It  is  a  bad 
thing  for  man  to  be  alone ;  for  if  he  falls  he  finds  no  one  to 
raise  him  up ;  but  if  a  man  is  not  let  alone,  and  those  who  ap- 
proach him  are  evil,  they  taint  and  corrupt  him  by  evil  com- 
pany, evil  association,  with  a  tradition  of  sin  that  is  handed 
down  from  generation  to  generation  in  this  world  of  ours. 
Ask  your  own  experience,  my  dear  friends.  I  ask  you,  when 
you  go  back,  and  travel  back  through  the  halls  of  your  mem- 
ory, and  contemplate  the  first  grievous  sin  of  your  lives,  the 
first  thing  that  makes  you  ashamed  and  sorrowful  that  you  have 
done  it.  Was  it  not  at  the  dictation  of  some  evil  companion? 
Was  it  not  introduced  to  you  by  evil  associations  ?  Was  it  not 
the  association  of  young  men,  of  wicked  men,  that  first  fanned 
the  fire  that,  slumbering  in  your  breast,  had  never  yet  broken 
out  in  the  devouring  element  of  sin  in  your  soul ;  that  sin  which 
makes  us  turn  back,  and  lay  maledictions  on  the  follies  of  our 
past  lives.  Save  the  youth  if  you  can,  my  dear  friends  ;  stand 
like  an  angel  between  him,  upon  whose  soul  the  beauty  of  pu- 


Our  Catholic   Young  Men.  125 

rity  is  yet  shining,  and  the  enemies  whose  approach  will  be 
his  ruin.  This  young  man,  yet  limpid  and  pure  in  heart,  who 
still  bears  the  impression  of  the  Divine  Image  of  the  Son  of 
God  ;  stand  between  him  and  his  friend  who  approaches  him  in 
the  guise  of  friendship,  whose  breath  is  sin,  whose  voice  will 
taint  the  purity  of  his  soul,  break  the  Divine  Image,  corrupt 
and  debauch  that  man  forever,  and  sow  the  seedling  of  hell  in 
that  pure  young  mind. 

On  the  other  hand,  if  you  leave  this  youth  alone,  he  has 
within  him  the  elements  of  corruption.  Even  though  nothing 
evil  approaches  him,  the  whispers  of  hell  will  resound  in  his  pas- 
sionate young  heart,  and  bring  with  them  the  suggestions  of 
evil.  The  first  thing  that  is  necessary  for  that  young  man,  in 
order  to  make  him  a  son  of  the  Church,  and  to  meet  her  re- 
quirements, is  to  surround  him  with  good  associations,  with 
good  companions,  and  to  feed  his  young  mind  with  the  proper 
food  of  high,  intellectual,  yet  holy  and  Catholic  instruction. 
The  next  thing  that  is  necessar}'-,  is  to  surround  him  with  com- 
panions whose  example  may  be  as  a  light  to  his  path ;  whose 
words  may  be  an  encouragement  to  him  in  virtue ;  whose  very 
association  may  be  an  influence  preserving  the  purity  that  is 
there,  and  fortifying  it,  by  inspiring,  by  their  words  and  their 
bright  lives,  a  horror,  loathing,  and  detestation  of  sin. 

It  is  for  such  an  organization  as  this  that  I  am  come  here 
this  evening  to  speak.  I  think  I  have  suggested  to  you  enough 
as  to  its  importance  and  necessity.  A  few  years  ago,  here  in 
Brooklyn,  if  a  Catholic  young  man  was  in  any  business,  as  soon 
as  the  store  or  the  office  was  closed,  where  was  he  to  turn — after 
his  day's  work,  where  was  he  to  turn  for  amusement?  Where 
was  he  to  turn  for  relaxation  for  his  mind,  if  he  had  no  Catholic 
friends?  True,  he  had  the  theatre  open  to  him,  displaying, 
under  the  most  insidious  and  fascinating  forms,  the  lurking  de- 
mons of  vice  and  impurity.  He  had  Protestant  associations 
around  ;  but,  if  he  joined  one  of  these,  the  moment  he  entered 
the  club-room,  or  other  place,  the  first  thing  he  heard  was  a 
word  of  insult  against  his  religion,  and,  in  the  weakness  of  his 
young  nature,  perhaps  he  is  tempted  to  blush  for  bearing  the 
name  of  Catholic,  and,  in  a  moment  of  deplorable  weakness, 
passes  himself  off  as  one  of  themselves.  The  books  that  are 
put    into    his  hands  are    all    philosophical  assaults  upon    his 


126  Our  Catholic   Youns:  Men. 


'<:> 


religion  ; — books  written  by  gentlemen  like  Mr.  Froude  ;  books 
that  made  him — uneducated  and  untrained  as  he  was — books 
that  actually  made  the  young  man's  intellect  ashamed  of  pro- 
fessing such  a  tissue  of  absurdities  as  these  books  represent  the 
high  religion  of  the  Catholic  Church  to  be.  I  confess  that,  if  I 
had  not  knowledge  enough  to  know  that  they  are  lying — if  I 
could  let  into  my  mind  that  the  Catholic  Church  is  what  these 
men  describe  it  to  be,  I  would  renounce  the  Catholic  religion 
to-night  before  to-morrow.  But  it  is  precisely  because  I  know 
they  are  lying ;  it  is  precisely  because  I  can  lay  my  hands  upon 
the  lie,  and  the  source  of  the  lie,  that  I  am  strengthened  in 
reading  these  books.  But  put  before  you  the  case  of  a  young 
man,  a  partly  uneducated  man,  merely  receiving  the  elements 
of  education  and  training,  and  then  sent  out  to  the  business  of 
life,  and  flung  upon  the  mercy  of  those  intellectual  tyrants,  who 
would  force  the  lie  into  his  mind,  and  into  his  intelligence,  by 
putting  before  him  the  vilest  caricatures  of  the  religion  of  his 
fathers  ; — what  follows  ?  He  gets  ashamed  of  that  religion  which 
he  is  not  learned  enough  to  defend  ;  he  becomes  ashamed  of  the 
name  of  Catholic  ;  and  God  only  knows  how  many  of  our  youth 
in  America  have  fallen  away  from  their  faith  because  of  the  in- 
tellectual trials  which  Protestant  association  has  brought  with  it. 

On  the  other  hand,  are  his  morals  secure?  He  has  no  place 
to  go  to  except  some  place  of  Protestant  association.  Well, 
my  friends,  I  do  not  want  to  say  a  word  against  the  morality 
of  our  Protestant  fellow-citizens ;  but  this  I  do  say,  that  if  I 
had  a  brother,  a  nephew,  or  friend,  I  would  much  rather  see 
him  associate  with  a  lot  of  Catholic  young  men,  who  were 
obliged  by  their  rules  to  go  to  confession  and  commimion 
twice  a  year,  than  to  see  him  associate  with  a  lot  of  Protestant 
youths,  who  had  no  restraint  whatever  upon  their  consciences, 
no  restraint  of  confession,  no  obligation  to  look  into  them- 
selves, no  philosophical  teaching  as  to  the  rules  of  Christian 
morality,  but  are  simply  told,  in  a  general  way,  "  to  be  good 
and  lean  upon  the  Lord." 

In  this  our  age  everything  goes  by  association  and  organiza- 
tion. Every  trade  has  its  associations.  Every  commercial 
circle  resolves  itself  into  a  "  ring."  If  you  wish  to  build  a  rail- 
road, you  must  first  make  up  a  "ring"  to  control  it.  If  you 
wish  to  forward  an  election,  you  must  do  it  through  a  "  ring," 


Our  Catholic   Young  Men.  12/ 

or  an  association.  If  you  wish  to  preserve  your  interests,  in 
entering  upon  any  trade,  you  must,  in  the  saying  of  the  hour, 
"  form  a  connection,"  which  means  you  must  "  get  into  the 
ring."  If  they  vote  you  out,  your  trade  is  gone  ;  all  prospect 
of  prosperity  is  taken  from  you.  This  is  the  spirit  of  our  age 
and  century ;  it  is  essentially  the  spirit  of  association.  The  devil 
understands  every  age  better  than  anybody  else,  after  the  Al- 
mighty God  ;  and  the  moment  he  sees  what  the  spirit  of  any  age 
is  he  enters  in  at  once  and  tries  to  make  the  most  of  it  for  his  own 
infernal  purposes.  The  consequence  is,  the  devil  works  to-day 
by  association.  He  tries  to  entrap  the  young  into  secret  so- 
cieties, to  make  them  swear  away  their  manhood  and  liberty  by 
secret  oaths,  and  makes  them  pledge  themselves — puts  an  obli- 
gation on  them — the  fulfillment  of  which  might  involve  crime 
or  immorality,  perhaps  even  bloodshed  and  murder.  Thus  it  is 
that,  in  the  European  nations,  the  associations  of  to-day,  the 
secret  societies  of  to-day,  have  completely  honey-combed  the 
whole  face  of  society.  They  have  undermined  almost  the  foun- 
dations of  the  world  ;  and  men  scarcely  know  the  moment 
when  some  violent  disruption  may  destroy  everything,  and  re- 
duce society  to  its  primary  elements.  The  devil  must  be  met 
upon  his  own  ground  ;  and,  as  he  works  by  associations,  so  the 
Church  must  work  by  associations.  Hence  it  is,  to-day,  that 
we  have  Temperance  Societies,  St.  Vincent  de  Paul  Societies, 
the  Confraternities  of  the  Scapular,  of  the  Rosary,  and  of  the 
Sacred  Heart,  Young  Men's  Societies,  Young  Men's  Associa- 
tions— the  Church  trying  to  bring  her  children  together  to  save 
their  faith,  to  save  their  manhood  and  their  purity,  by  keeping 
them  out  of  the  infernal  associations  and  dangers  that  surround 
them.  This  is  the  purpose  of  the  association  for  which  I  speak. 
And,  my  friends,  in  thus  forwarding  the  ends  and  purposes  of 
God,  the  Catholic  Church  promotes  the  highest  interests  of  the 
State.  Remember,  it  is  the  custom  nowadays,  to  look  upon 
the  Catholic  Church  as  the  enemy  of  the  State.  Victor 
Emmanuel,  in  Italy,  says  :  "  Oh  !  the  Church  is  the  enemy  of  the 
State ;  and,  therefore,  we  must  take  all  her  means  away — her 
churches,  convents — melt  down  the  chalices  and  all  the  sacred 
vessels,  and  turn  them  into  money ;  and  then  we  will  keep  the 
money,  and  the  priests  may  go  and  starve."  In  France,  they 
say :  "  The  Church  is  the  enemy  of  the  State ;  and,  therefore, 


128  Our  Catholic   Young  Men. 

we  must  take  away  from  her  all  power  over  the  schools  and  ed- 
ucation, and  leave  the  priests  nothing."  In  Germany,  Bismarck 
says  :  "  Oh  !  the  Church  is  the  enemy  of  the  State  ;  conse- 
quently we  must  turn  the  Jesuits  out,  rob  them  of  their  prop- 
erty, take  even  their  books,  and  let  them  go  be  hanged."  The 
other  day,  in  the  Prussian  province  of  Posen,  the  pious  Cath- 
olics of  the  place  came  together  with  their  priests  and  bishops, 
and  made  up  their  minds  to  put  themselves  under  the  protec- 
tion of  the  Sacred  Heart  of  Jesus  Christ.  Now,  would  you  be- 
lieve it — Bismarck,  as  soon  as  he  heard  of  this,  sent  his  soldiers 
to  close  all  the  churches,  so  that  not  one  Catholic  of  that  Prus- 
sian province  could  as  much  as  hear  Mass  on  Sunday.  Here, 
in  America,  also,  the  Protestant  papers — the  Methodist  papers 
and  others — are  constantly  coming  out,  saying :  "  Beware  of 
the  Roman  Catholics ;  they  are  growing  in  the  country.  These 
Irish  are  an  aggressive,  noisy  lot,  and  won't  be  contented  until 
they  get  the  upper  hand  ;  and  when  they  get  the  upper  hand, 
God  help  us !  We  must  keep  the  Catholic  Church  out  of  the 
schools  ;  we  must  keep  the  Catholic  Church  from  acquiring 
property ;  we  must  not  allow  the  State  to  give  even  one  cent 
of  the  public  money  for  the  education  of  Catholic  children  in 
Catholic  schools.  See  all  the  land  they  are  buying  ;  see  all  the 
churches  they  are  building  !  Oh  !  what  is  to  become  of  America 
if  this  terrible  Catholic  Church  gets  any  footing  at  all  in  this 
land  ;  for  she  is  an  enemy  of  the  State  !  "  Thus  they  speak. 
Now,  my  friends,  if  America  cannot  get  on  without  intelligence 
and  manhood  and  energy,  I  ask  you,  is  it  not  the  interest  of 
America  to  see  who  it  is  that  can  supply  her  most  intelligence 
and  most  energy — who  it  is  that  can  supply  the  national  market 
with  the  very  articles  that  it  requires  ?  Will  it  do  for  America 
to  have  her  young  men  infidels,  laughing  and  scoffing  at  all 
religion,  laughing  and  scoffing  at  the  idea  of  the  immortality  of 
the  soul  of  man,  of  eternal  reward  in  heaven,  or  eternal  punish- 
ment in  hell?  Will  this  do  for  America?  If  the  merchants  and 
the  statesmen,  the  governors  and  the  magistrates,  and  the 
working  men  of  this  land  are  to  become  infidels,  if  they  are  to 
lose  all  faith  by  reading  bad,  infidel  books,  if  they  are  to  laugh 
at  the  idea  of  a  future  state  of  punishment  or  reward,  are  they 
likely  to  be  honester  men  for  this  ?  Is  the  national  property 
safer  in  their  hands  ?    Are  they  likely  to  be  better  merchants, 


Our  Catholic   Young  Men.  1 29 

more  reliable,  more  trustworthy  ?  Tell  me — suppose  you  have 
to  deal  with  two  men,  and  you  want  to  intrust  your  money  to 
one  of  them  ;  and  one  told  you  there  was  no  devil,  no  hell,  no 
heaven,  and  that  he  very  much  questioned  if  there  was  a  God, 
for  he  had  been  reading  in  his  youth  bad  books,  which  com- 
pletely upset  his  faith  ;  and  the  other  told  you  that  he  believed 
in  God,  and  heaven,  and  hell,  and  said  :  "  I  believe,  myself, 
that  I  shall  be  in  heaven  or  hell  through  all  eternity — I  believe 
I  shall  be  in  one  place  or  the  other,  according  to  the  way  I 
behave  myself  in  this  world;"  to  which  of  these  two  men 
would  you  intrust  your  money?  Would  you  give  your  money 
to  the  fellow  that  told  you  :  "  I  don't  believe  in  anything  ;  if  I 
choose  to  rob  you,  there  is  no  hell  to  punish  me  ;  "  or  to  the 
man  who  said  :  "  I  believe  in  God,  and  that,  if  I  rob  you  of 
your  money,  I  shall  go  to  hell  for  it?"  If  America  wants  in- 
telligence of  an  honest  kind — and  remember  that  intelligence 
without  honesty  is  worse  than  no  intelligence  at  all ;  I  wouldi 
rather,  any  day,  have  to  deal  with  a  fool,  than  with  a  sharp  man, 
without  any  conscience — if  America  wants  honest  intelligence,. 
I  tell  the  citizens  of  America,  that  the  best  friend  that  America 
has  to  lean  upon  is  the  Catholic  Church,  which,  by  creating 
faith,  creates  a  conscience  in  the  heart  of  man.  Does  America 
want  strong  hands,  strong,  energetic  manhood,  the  pure  integ- 
rity of  an  unstained  youth,  husbanding  all  its  resources,  not 
scattering  them  all  in  that  course  of  early  dissolution — does 
she  want  the  man  of  thirty  or  forty,  vigorous,  strong  in  mind 
and  body,  noble  in  purpose,  straightforward  in  all  his  dealings,, 
and  bringing  with  him  into  the  sacred  relations  of  the  father  of 
a  family  that  purity  which  will  insure  a  strong  and  healthy 
generation  from  him — who  is  the  best  friend,  of  America,  if  not 
the  only  Church  that  not  only  teaches  men  to  be  pure,  but 
obliges  them,  through  the  confessional,  to  be  pure,  and  conse- 
quently to  respect  their  blood  and  their  manhood  ;  and  thus 
brings  them  through  a  robust  and  vigorous  middle  age,  until 
the  head  of  the  old  man,  bending  towards  the  grave,  is  crowned 
with  the  honor  and  the  glory  of  an  unstained,  immaculate 
purity  of  life. 

The  want  of  an  association  that  would  provide  for  all  this, 
was  felt  in  Brooklyn — felt  by  your  zealous  priests — and  I  con- 
gratulate   you,   citizens  of  Brooklyn,  upon  your  priesthood — 

9 


130  Our  Catholic   You?ig  Mett. 

felt  by  your  holy,  energetic  bishop  ;  by  the  man  who  has  cov- 
ered your  city  and  his  diocese  with  glorious  and  beautiful 
churches,  with  splendid  hospitals  and  schools,  and  all  the  in- 
stitutions that  are  necessary  for  your  spiritual  welfare  and 
that  of  your  children  after  you.  It  was  felt  by  that  man 
who  quietly,  unostentatiously,  but  with  a  power  sent  to  him 
from  God,  has  been  enabled  to  do  all  this,  and  to  claim  the 
glory  that,  having  done  it  all,  he  is  a  poor  man,  as  he  ought 
to  be.  This  want  was  felt  by  the  Catholic  youth  of  Brooklyn 
themselves ;  and  from  their  feeling  it  so  keenly,  they  come 
forward  to  found  this  association  in  order  to  meet  it. 
1  honor  them,  I  give  them  glory,  and  I  promise  them  the 
future  that  the  Church  of  God  and  the  glorious  land  of  Amer- 
ica hold  in  their  hands  for  them.  And  so  they  have  banded 
themselves  together  to  provide  a  Catholic  hall,  where  the  young 
man,  after  his  hours  of  business,  may  find  every  attraction  to 
draw  him  away  from  evil  companions ;  to  draw  him  away  from 
the  darkened  streets,  the  by-paths  of  the  devil ;  to  pro- 
vide every  reasonable  amusement  there,  to  make  the  evening 
pass  lightly  and  pleasantly  over  his  head  ;  to  provide  for  him  a 
library,  where  in  his  hours  of  rest,  after  the  day's  business,  he 
may  acquire  that  knowledge  and  information  which  at  some  fu- 
ture day  will  bring  him  forward  as  a  prominent  man,  and  as  a 
worthy  descendant  of  the  Clays,  the  Websters,  the  Sewards,  and 
the  Greeleys  of  this  glorious  country.  But,  before  he  enters 
into  this  association,  he  is  asked  to  express  his  willingness  to 
conform  with  one  essential  rule  :  and  that  is  to  go  to  his  sacra- 
mental duties  of  confession  and  communion  at  least  twice  a 
year  ;  while  he  is  recommended  to  go  four  times  in  the  year. 
The  consequence  is,  that  all  this  land  demands  of  him  of  intelli- 
gence is  provided  for  here  ;  all  that  this  land  demands  of 
him  of  energy  is  provided  for  here  ;  and  all  the  Church  of  God 
expects  from  him  as  her  son,  she  has  reason  to  hope  for ;  be- 
cause the  man  will  be  preserved,  by  his  associations  and  by  his 
reading,  in  the  strength  of  his  Catholic  faith,  and  in  the  energy 
and  power  of  his  Catholic  purity.  And  this  is  all  the  more 
necessary,  inasmuch  as  this  country  is  rising  every  day,  not  only 
in  national  power,  but  also  in  intellectual  power.  It  is  a  keen 
race,  not  only  of  the  man  of  business  with  his  fellow-merchant, 
but  it  is  a  keen  race  of  mind  with  mind,  in  America.    Never,  in 


Our  Catholic   Young  Men.  131 

the  history  of  any  people,  since  the  world  was  created,  has  there 
been  such  wonderful,  such  high,  magnificent  intellectual  devel- 
opment as  has  taken  place  in  America  within  the  last  few  years. 
She  has  produced  her  statesmen,  rivaling  and  surpassing  those 
who  pretended  to  have  the  accumulated  wisdom  of  hundreds 
and  hundreds  of  years  in  Europe.  She  has  produced  poets  as 
lofty  in  their  inspiration,  as  grand  and  mellifluous  in  their  ex- 
pression, as  tender  in  their  sympathy  with  everything  that  is 
high  and  beautiful  in  nature,  as  any  poet  of  the  old  lands.  She 
has  produced  orators  whose  names  will  go  down  into  history 
upon  the  golden  flow  of  their  splendid  eloquence.  She  has  pro- 
duced soldiers  capable  of  doing,  in  the  late  wars  of  America, 
what  no  soldier  of  France,  I  regret  to  say,  was  found  capable 
of  doing  during  the  late  war  with  Prussia — capable  of  manoeu- 
vring two  hundred  thousand  men  upon  the  field.  She  has 
produced,  in  every  walk  of  science  and  of  art,  men  whose  names 
are  written  not  only  upon  the  annals  of  their  own  age  and  land, 
but  whose  names  are  engraved  upon  the  annals  of  other  lands, 
as  very  giants  of  intelligence,  as  miracles  of  ingenuity,  of  science, 
and  of  art. 

Young  citizens  of  America,  if  you  wish  to  keep  pace,  you 
must  feed  your  intelligence  with  every  kind  of  knowledge.  If 
you  wish  to  keep  up  in  this  gigantic  race  of  intellect  in  Amer- 
ica, you  must  become  clever,  learned  men,  as  far  as  your  means 
will  permit;  and  you  must  drink,  as  deeply  as  you  can,  at  the 
unpolluted  fountains  of  science  and  knowledge.  If  you  do  this, 
I  promise  you  that  the  historian  of  the  immediate  future  will 
write  down  the  names  of  Catholic  youth — names,  perhaps,  sav- 
oring of  the  old  green  land  of  Ireland — side  by  side  with  the 
names  that  are  foremost  to-day  among  the  statesmen,  warriors, 
historians,  poets,  and  journalists  of  America.  And  this  is  cer- 
tainly the  issue  to  which  we  are  growing ;  and  I  am  proud 
to  see  it.  I  am  proud  to  see  that  amongst  the  intellec- 
tual efforts  of  America,  Catholics  are  not  behind  ;  that 
we  have  our  monthlies,  our  weekly  papers,  equal  to  any 
that  the  land  produces  for  purity  of  style,  for  energy  in 
working  up  their  materials,  and  for  high  tone  and  purpose.  If 
I  wanted  to  instance  this,  I  have  only  to  point  to  that  Catholic 
paper  which  has  so  lately  begun  amongst  you,  and  which  cer- 
tainly has  been  to  me  a  source  of  admiration  and  joy  since  its 


132  Our  Catholic   Young  Men. 

first  number  appeared.  I  allude  to  the  Catholic  Review  of 
Brooklyn.  It  is  the  work  of  a  young  Catholic  gentleman  ;  and 
it  is  an  illustration  of  all  that  I  am  saying  of  the  necessity  of 
keeping  pace  with  our  age  in  this  great  intellectual  race  which 
is  going  on.  And  I  am,  also,  proud  to  say  that  the  young 
and  talented  editor  of  this  admirable  Catholic  paper  reflects 
honor  and  credit  on  Ireland's  great  ecclesiastical  centre  of  learn- 
ing, the  College  of  Maynooth,  and  on  the  schools  connected 
with  our  Irish  Catholic  University,  which  thus  sends  forth  one 
of  her  first  sons  to  take  a  prominent  part  in  the  great  intel- 
lectual contest  of  truth  against  falsehood,  and  of  Catholic  intel- 
ligence and  morality  against  the  errors  and  sinful  spirit  of  our 
age. 


PONTIFICATE  OF  PIUS  IX. 


[Delivered  in  the  Church  of  the  Immaculate  Conception,  Yonkers,  N.  Y.,  on  Monday 

evening,  December  i6th,  1872.] 

Y  FRIENDS:  The  subject  of  our  evening  lecture  is 
the  grandest  that  could  occupy  the  mind  or  employ 
the  tongue  of  man  in  this  sad,  mean  age  of  ours ;  it  is 
the  Pontificate  of  Pius  IX. 
This  nineteenth  century,  of  which  we  boast  so  much,  is  an  age 
of  great  material  progress,  an  age  of  railways,  of  electric  tele- 
graphs, of  ocean  steamers,  and  of  discoveries  of  every  kind. 
But,  side  by  side  with  all  these  material  improvements,  this  age 
of  ours,  considered  morally,  intellectually,  and  spiritually,  falls 
short  of  many  of  the  centuries  that  went  before.  In  former  ages, 
although  material  civilization  was  less,  still  there  was  great  im- 
provement, from  time  to  time,  amongst  the  people  in  some  great, 
noble  cause — as,  for  instance,  when  Catholic  and  Christian  Eu- 
rope sent  forth  its  chivalry,  and  men  exposed  their  lives,  and 
shed  their  blood — for  what  ?  To  vindicate  the  sanctity  of  the 
Lord's  sepulchre,  and  to  keep  floating  over  the  tomb  of  Jesus 
Christ  the  standard  of  the  Cross.  In  subsequent  ages,  we  see 
how  kings  went  forth  from  their  thrones,  from  their  palaces,  and 
from  all  the  luxuries  that  surrounded  them,  and  exposed  them- 
selves to  a  thousand  dangers,  in  some  high,  noble,  and  chival- 
rous cause  ;  as  when  a  prince  of  the  house  of  Austria  led  all  the 
intelligence,  the  energy,  and  the  bravery  of  Christian  Europe 
into  tjattle  with  the  Turks  on  the  waters  of  Lepanto  Bay.  But 
in  truth,  if  we  examine  public  events  in  this  nineteenth  century 
of  ours,  we  find  nothing  great,  nothing  noble,  no  magnificent 
idea  animating  the  nations.  The  freedom  of  America  was  ac- 
complished before  the  eighteenth  century  closed.  The  great 
events  in  your  war  go  along  with  the  glories  of  the  century  that 
went  before  our  own,  and,  with  the  exception  of  Catholic  eman- 


134  Pontificate  of  Pius  IX. 

cipation,  there  has  been  no  great  and  noble  act  of  any  nation  in 
this  nineteenth  century.  Catholic  emancipation  is  not  the  glory 
and  not  the  volition  of  the  government  from  whom  it  was  forced, 
but  of  the  Irish  people,  who,  by  their  constancy,  and  their  relig- 
ious fidelity,  triumphed  over  their  old  enemy. 

This  century  of  ours  was  ushered  in  by  the  terrible  French 
Revolution,  which  flooded  the  noble  land  of  France  with  the 
blood  of  its  best  and  most  loving  sons.  This  nineteenth  cen- 
tury of  ours  has  witnessed  the  coalition  of  all  the  States  of  Eu- 
rope, all  banding  themselves  together  to  break  down  by  brute 
force  the  greatest  military  genius  of  this  or  any  other  age — Na- 
poleon. This  nineteenth  century  of  ours  has  witnessed  the  up- 
rising of  a  people  in  senseless,  brainless  rebellion,  and  it  has 
witnessed  the  terrible  retort  of  kingly  brute  force,  and  the  extin- 
guishment of  the  principles  of  a  nation.  This  nineteenth  cen- 
tury of  ours  has  witnessed  nations  invading  others,  their  neigh- 
bors, without  any  pretense  or  cause  of  justice  whatever.  There 
have  been  wars  in  this  century  of  ours,  my  friends  ;  but  from  the 
first  day  of  the  nineteenth  century  down  to  this,  I  will  venture 
to  assert,  that  not  a  single  religious  war  has  been  waged,  not  a 
single  war  has  been  carried  on  that  has  not  been  founded  in  in- 
justice ;  not  even  the  Crimean,  in  which  France  and  England 
united  to  crush  the  power  of  Russia.  There  did  we  see  the 
eldest  son  of  the  Church  allied  with  a  Protestant  and  a  most  in- 
fidel power,  to  wage  war  on  the  side  of  Mahomet  against  Christ. 
This  nineteenth  century  has  witnessed  what  Europe  never  saw 
before — robbers  crowned  with  kingly  crowns,  and  seated  on 
royal  thrones.  Such  a  robber  was  the  late  ruler  of  France. 
What  right  had  he  to  invade  the  dominions  of  Austria?  What 
right  had  he  to  claim  the  title  to  the  northern  portion  of  Italy — 
the  ancient  house  of  Savoy?  What  right  had  William  of  Prus- 
sia and  Napoleon  of  France  to  wage  a  war,  during  the  progress 
of  which — though  it  cost  oceans  of  blood — it  came  out  that  the 
motive  was  one  of  mere  policy?  Also  the  robbery  came  out 
when  these  two  thieves — I  can  call  them  nothing  else — were 
plotting,  through  their  ministers,  to  divide  Belgium,  an  inde- 
pendent State,  between  them.  Bismarck  was  the  thief  who  first 
proposed  the  robbery  to  Napoleon,  and  seized  on  part  of  the 
principal  on  account.  Good  God  I  has  it  come  to  this,  that  the 
rulers  of  Europe,  the  kings  and  emperors  of  the  nations  and 


Pontificate  of  Pius  IX.  135 

peoples,  have  their  blades  ready  in  their  hands  to  shed  blood, 
because  one  outwitted  the  other  in  robbery.  This  came  out 
plain  and  square  in  the  mutual  accusations  of  the  prime  minis- 
ters of  France  and  Prussia.  The  nineteenth  century  is  coming 
to  a  close,  and  a  fitting  close  of  this  age  of  ours  is  an  act  of  high- 
way robbery  by  a  king,  invading  the  dominions  of  a  poor,  weak, 
unarmed  old  man,  taking  Rome  and  the  Papal  Dominions  from 
the  Pope.  They  have  no  title  under  heaven  ;  they  have  not  the 
plea  of  justice,  or  even  exigency;  they  do  it  simply  because  they 
are  able.  Just  as  a  house-breaker  or  a  burglar  might  go  into 
your  house  or  mine,  to-night  or  to-morrow,  and  rob  us  of  all 
that  we  had  in  the  world,  and  if  we  asked  him,  "  Do  you  know 
what  you  are  doing?  Do  you  know  that  you  are  a  scoundrel 
and  a  robber?"  and  he  should  say,  "  No,  I  am  able  to  do  it ;  I 
am  a  stronger  man  than  you.  I  am  only  doing  what  Victor 
Emmanuel  did  to  the  Pope." 

But,  amidst  all  the  meanness  and  all  the  commonplaces  of  this 
age  of  ours,  there  is  one  magnificent  spectacle,  one  thing  that 
marks  this  nineteenth  century  with  the  greatest  glory,  one 
peculiarly  its  own,  and  that  is,  the  Pontificate  of  Pius  IX.  What- 
ever else  this  nineteenth  century,  our  age,  has  failed  to  produce, 
it  has  produced  the  noblest  Pope  and  the  grandest  man  that 
ever  sat  upon  the  chair  of  Peter  in  Rome.  Whatever  else  may 
be  written  on  the  face  of  the  history  of  the  nineteenth  century, 
in  letters  of  blood,  or  in  letters  of  black,  there  is  one  thing  that 
must  be  written  in  letters  of  burnished  gold,  and  that  is  the  Pon- 
tificate, glorious  and  magnificent,  of  this  saintly  old  man,  who 
sits  in  Rome,  still  crowned,  amidst  all  his  afflictions,  with  the 
honor  and  the  glory  of  which  no  man  can  deprive  him,  Pius  IX., 
Head  of  the  Catholic  Church.  But,  my  friends,  assertion  is 
not  proof,  and  the  man  who  makes  an  assertion  so  bold  as  mine 
must  be  prepared  to  prove  what  he  says,  or  else  it  would  be 
far  better  for  him  to  hold  his  tongue  and  not  speak  at  all. 

The  grandest  thing  in  the  world,  save  the  conception  of  the 
sacred  humanity  of  the  Son  of  God  incarnate  ;  the  grandest  thing 
that  the  world  has  ever  seen,  is  the  Catholic  Church,  founded  by 
our  Divine  Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ,  representing  upon 
this  earth  the  Unity,  the  Sanctity,  and  the  Eternity  of  the 
Almighty  God,  who  made  it  a  Unity  all  the  more  wonderful  in  a 
world  so  divided  as  ours  ;  a  Sanctity  all  the  more  wonderful  in  a 


136  Pontificate  of  Pius  IX. 

world  so  unholy  and  defiled  as  ours;  an  Eternity  all  the  more 
wonderful  in  a  world  so  evanescent,  so  changeable,  so  transitory 
as  ours.  And  this  is  the  meaning  of  the  word  of  Scripture  when 
the  Psalmist  says,  "  God  is  wonderful  in  all  His  works."  Every 
work  of  God  is  wonderful,  because  everything  that  exists  par- 
ticipates in  some  form  or  other  in  the  attributes  of  God.  And 
the  more  largely  anything  participates  in  the  divine  attributes, 
the  more  wonderful  that  thing  becomes,  because  the  more  like 
to  God.  Now,  among  all  the  things  of  the  earth,  there  is  nothing 
that  shows  so  highly  and  so  emphatically  the  attributes  of  God 
as  His  holy  Catholic  Church,  for  she  represents  the  unity  of  God 
in  the  unity  of  our  doctrine  of  unquestioning  obedience.  We 
have  unity  of  doctrine. 

We  are  two  hundred  millions,  my  friends,  scattered  all  the 
world  over.  We  find  ourselves  in  communities,  as,  for  instance, 
in  the  great  cities  of  New  York  and  Brooklyn,  where  Catholics 
are  numbered  by  hundreds  of  thousands.  Sometimes  we  find 
ourselves  in  communities  of  nations,  as  in  the  green  old  mother 
land  that  bore  me,  where  that  whole  nation — blessed  be  God  !— 
is  Catholic.  Sometimes  again  we  find  ourselves  broken  up  into 
small  communities  in  the  midst  of  our  Protestant  brethren  and 
fellow-citizens,  the  Catholics  only  representing  a  unit  in  the 
community.  You  sometimes  find  a  Catholic  family  out  in  the 
far  West,  out  on  the  bosom  of  the  vast  prairies,  settled  down 
in  a  little  shanty  on  the  banks  of  a  little  western  river;  but 
wherever  you  find  them,  whether  in  nations,  in  cities,  in  small 
communities,  or  individuals,  if  you  find  one  Catholic,  you  find, 
personified  in  him,  the  certain  faith  of  two  hundred  millions  of 
men.  Question  one  of  them,  and  if  he  knows  his  catechism, 
you  have  the  response  of  all.  Ask  him,  and  he  will  tell  you 
what  the  two  hundred  millions  will  tell  you  if  you  have  only 
time  and  patience  to  go  through  and  ask  every  man  among  them, 
and  you  will  find  no  difference  of  opinion  or  belief  in  their 
doctrines.  God,  in  His  true  Church,  has  welded  together  two 
hundred  millions  of  intelligences,  varying  and  dissenting  on 
every  other  point.  He  has  made  them  united  in  faith,  as  He 
Himself  has  said,  "As  one."  In  their  obedience,  in  like  man- 
ner, Catholics  are  one.  Ask  any  Catholic  in  the  world,  and  you 
have  asked  them  all,  who  is  the  Head  of  the  Church,  and  the 
answer  will  be,  "The  Pope  of  Rome."     Do  you  acknowledge 


Pontificate  of  Pius  IX.  137 

him  as  the  head  of  the  bishops  and  people  ?  Yes,  in  every  sin- 
gle point,  highest  of  all  unto  us.  Even  as  the  proud  Egyptian 
pyramid,  taking  hold  of  the  earth,  covering  acres  of  soil, 
sweeping  aside  and  resisting  the  power  and  might  of  successive 
ages,  yet  still,  tapering  up  to  the  summit,  ends  in  one  single  block 
of  stone  pointing  to  heaven  ;  so  the  Catholic  Church,  spreading 
herself  out,  and  covering  the  whole  world,  in  such  strength  that 
neither  time,  nor  the  world,  nor  hell  can  destroy  her,  yet  reaches 
up  towards  God  through  the  succession  of  the  clergy ;  the 
clergy,  bearing  their  episcopacy,  and  the  whole  hierarchy  of  the 
Church  terminating  in  one  man,  who  is  the  head  of  all ;  the  com- 
mander whose  voice  all  obey,  because  that  man  represents  Peter, 
and  Peter  represents  Jesus  Christ,  the  head  of  the  Catholic 
Church. 

The  Church  represents  the  Sanctity  of  God.  For  two  thou- 
sand years  she  has  stood  before  the  world,  and  every  philosopher, 
every  learned  man,  has  looked  upon  her  with  a  keen,  searching, 
often  a  hostile  eye.  Every  fault  has  been  attributed  to  her, 
every  sharp,  cunning,  conceivable  insult  has  been  flung  at  her. 
Yet  she  stands  before  them  all  with  this  simple  word  upon  her 
h*ps:  "Tell  me,  oh,  ye  learned  men,  ye  philosophers,  at  what 
time,  in  what  day,  in  what  hour,  at  what  moment  of  my  exist- 
ence of  two  thousand  years,  can  you  prove  that  I  have  sanc- 
tioned, encouraged,  or  even  tolerated  the  slightest  sin  ?  Where 
is  the  child  of  mine  that  will  be  able  to  rise  up  in  the  valley  of 
Jehoshaphat  and  say,  '  O  mother !  I  believed  in  you,  and  you  told 
me  I  might  tell  a  lie.' "  "  I  never  said  it,"  the  Church  answers. 
"  O  mother !  I  believed  in  you,  and  you  told  me  I  might  nourish  a 
passing  thought  of  sin."  The  Church  comes  forth  and  says,  "  In 
the  name  of  God,  thou  liest.  Thy  perdition  is  on  thine  own 
head."  Not  the  slightest  sin  or  approach  to  sin  is  tolerated  in 
the  intelligent  and  magnificent  morality  of  the  Catholic  Church. 
She  reflects  the  sanctity  of  God  in  the  prayer  that  never  dies 
from  her  lips,  for  the  outpouring  of  those  graces  in  the  sacra- 
ments, that,  when  partaken  of,  make  holy,  even  as  the  angels  of 
God,  the  greatest  sinner  on  earth.  If  they  submit  to  the 
Church's  influences,  she,  like  God,  is  not  only  holy  in  herself,  but 
she  is  able  to  make  holy. 

She  represents  the  Eternity  of  God,  for  Christ  our  Lord  found- 
ed her  upon  a  rock.     But  is  that  rock  Peter?     Says  the  apostle, 


138  Pontificate  of  Pius  IX. 

"  The  rock  was  Christ."  And  the  rock  was  Christ,  the  broad, 
eternal  Godlike  Foundation  of  the  Catholic  Church,  and  upon 
His  divine  bosom  He  planted  the  visible  rock,  who  was  Peter, 
saying,  "  Thou  art  Peter,  and  upon  this  rock  I  will  build  My 
Church."  Peter  was  the  rock  set  upon  Christ ;  for,  says  St.  Paul, 
"  The  Church  is  founded  on  the  foundation  of  the  apostles  and 
prophets,  the  great  corner-stone  Himself  being  Christ  Jesus  our 
Lord."  The  Church  cannot  fail  until  Peter  fails — until  Peter 
fails  in  his  successor;  Peter  cannot  fail  until  Christ  fails  ;  Christ 
is  God  and  cannot  fail.  Therefore,  the  Church  of  God  shall  live 
forever,  and  the  gates  of  hell  and  our  enemies  shall  never  prevail 
against  her.  Kingdoms  and  empires  may  pass  away,  human 
greatness  is  but  the  dream  of  him  who  dreameth  until  morning. 
Men  may  come,  and  men  may  go,  but  the  Church  stands  forever. 
Human  weakness  may  reveal  itself,  as  it  does  every  day,  in  the 
old  forms  of  detestable  sin  and  crime.  Society  may  groan 
under  its  own  miseries,  its  murders,  its  impurities,  its  abor- 
tions, its  dishonesties,  and  men  may  cry  out  in  their  despair,  as 
they  cry  in  the  daily  press,  "  When  shall  this  end  ?  When  shall 
we  have  justice,  purity,  and  honesty  ?  "  The  blind  fools  don't 
recognize  the  fact,  that  no  crime,  no  impurity,  no  dishonesty,  no 
sin  can  ever  be  tolerated  by  the  Church  of  God,  or  approach  the 
Catholic  Church.  And  she  alone  is  the  saviour  of  society,  be- 
cause she  alone  in  her  dogmas  can  declare  what  the  world  is 
crj'ing  out  for  in  this  our  day. 

The  world  may  divide  itself,  as  it  does,  into  a  thousand 
schools  of  philosophy,  a  thousand  schemes  and  systems  of  va- 
rying opinions  on  religion.  That  is  what  is  called  in  this  our 
day,  "  religion."  Every  religious  teacher  may  come  out  with 
his  own  scheme,  as  you  will  find  by  reading  the  New  York  Her- 
ald. You  will  read  there  such  a  mumble-jumble  of  doctrines  ; 
that  such  a  man  teaches  one  thing,  and  another  man  teaches 
the  very  opposite,  and  that  Mr.  So-and-so  is  considered  a  very 
pious  sort  of  man,  for  he  condescends  to  acknowledge  the 
existence  of  God  and  the  divinity  of  Jesus  Christ.  There  is 
no  unity  in  that  world,  and  yet  men  are  blind  enough,  will- 
fully blind  enough,  not  to  perceive  the  magnificent  unity,  sec- 
ond only  to  the  essential  unity  of  God,  which  guides  the  coun- 
cils, animates  the  words,  and  personifies  the  obedience  of  the 
Catholic  Church. 


Pontificate  of  Pius  IX.  139 

Well,  my  friends,  if  you  consider  these  things,  you  will  be 
obliged  to  conclude,  even  if  you  are  not  Catholics — I  don't 
know  whether  there  are  any  here  to-night  who  are  not  Catho- 
lics— you  will  be  obliged  to  conclude  that  there  must  be  some- 
thing divine  in  the  religion  which  captivates  the  intelligence  of 
two  hundred  millions  of  men,  and  which  makes  that  intelligence 
as  of  one  mind,  and  as  one  man  in  its  expression  of  religious 
belief.  It  touches  with  a  sanctifying  hand  every  form  of  sin ; 
and  by  destroying  sin,  changes  the  sinner  into  the  child  of  God. 
Beginning  with  the  sacrament  of  baptism,  it  goes  on  to  the 
sacrament  of  penance,  and  from  that  to  the  holy  communion, 
until  it  finally  wipes  away  the  very  latest  miseries  and  fears, 
which  will  attach  themselves  to  the  simplest  and  holiest,  by  the 
consoling  and  sanctifying  sacrament  of  extreme  unction.  There 
must  be  something  divine  in  a  Church  that  has  been  able  to 
stand  for  two  thousand  years,  that  has  never  allowed  any  polit- 
ical or  philosophical  question  to  go  without  examining  it  and 
judging  of  it ;  that  has  never  feared  to  take  up  any  inquiry  of 
science ;  ready  to  meet  every  inquirer,  give  him  his  answer,  and 
prove  it  to  him.  This  Catholic  Church  never  dies  ;  never  knows 
how  to  die  ;  never  grows  old  ;  never  knows  the  day  of  dissolu- 
tion. And  the  Church  alone,  like  unfallen  man,  will  pass  from 
its  militant  state  to  the  triumphant,  and  will  reign  as  the  Church 
of  God  forever  and  forever  in  heaven. 

If  such  be  the  conditions  and  attributes  of  the  Catholic  Church, 
if  history  proves  that  these  are  her  attributes,  it  is  natural,  my 
friends,  to  expect  something  great,  something  far  more  than  ordi- 
nary, something  grand  and  heroic,  in  the  man  whom  Almighty  God 
selects  to  make  the  head  of  that  Church.  Consider  for  a  moment 
the  two  official  attributes  of  this  man,  then  we  shall  gather  what 
we  may  expect  from  him  as  his  personal  attributes.  Officially,  the 
attributes  of  the  Pope  are,  first  of  all,  infallibility,  as  the  head  of 
the  Catholic  Church.  The  Pope  may  tell  a  thousand  lies,  but 
there  is  one  thing  he  cannot  do :  he  cannot  tolerate  a  lie,  or 
command  the  Catholic  Church  to  believe  a  lie.  Understand  me 
well.  This  is  a  question  not  understood  in  our  day.  Some — 
especially  Protestants — imagine  that  when  we  talk  of  Papal  In- 
fallibility, we  mean  that  the  Pope  can  do  no  wrong.  The  Pope 
can  do  as  much  wrong  as  you  or  I.  The  Pope  goes  to  confes- 
sion  every  week  like  every  other  priest.     If  he  does    not   go 


140  Pontificate  of  Pius  IX. 

there  sorry  for  his  sins,  and  making  up  his  mind  to  renounce 
them,  and  does  not  perform  his  penance,  he  may  be  lost  like 
any  other  man.  But,  remember,  we  are  not  talking  of  him  now 
as  an  individual,  as  a  person,  a  mere  man,  but  as  the  Head  of 
the  Catholic  Church.  As  the  supreme  pastor,  the  supreme 
ruler  of  the  Church,  the  first  attribute  that  belongs  to  him  is 
that  he  cannot  command  the  Catholic  Church  to  believe  a  lie  ; 
therefore  he  cannot  tell  a  lie  to  the  Church  in  his  capacity — 
speaking  ex  Cathedra — that  is,  from  the  throne  of  Peter  as  the 
Head  of  the  Church.  And  this  stands  to  reason,  my  friends, 
for  the  Catholic  Church  is  bound  to  accept  the  Pope's  words 
when  he  speaks  as  Head  of  the  Church ;  she  is  bound  to  bear 
allegiance  to  him,  and  to  take  the  law  from  his  lips.  There  is 
no  appeal  from  him,  when  the  Pope  speaks  and  says  that  is  the 
doctrine  of  the  Catholic  Church  on  such  and  such  a  point. 

The  Scripture  speaks  of  that  Church  :  "  Wisdom,  divine  wis- 
dom, hath  built  unto  herself  a  house,  and  she  carved  out  seven 
pillars  of  stone."  What  are  these  seven  pillars?  "  That  of  old, 
a  temple  of  divine  wisdom,"  says  St.  Bernard.  "  They  are  the 
virtues  of  faith,  hope,  and  charity,  theologically,  and  the  virtues 
of  temperance,  prudence,  justice,  and  fortitude,  morally.  Upon 
these  seven  pillars  the  Church  of  God  rests ;  the  Church  was 
founded  in  faith  ;  the  Church  lives  in  hope,  and  has  divine  grace 
and  charity.  The  Church  has  prudence  beyond  the  most  pru- 
dent of  men  ;  justice  that  has  never  compromised  herself  by  the 
slightest  concession ;  fortitude  that  has  been  able  to  fill  the 
world  with  her  martyrs,  and  a  temperance  that  reveals  itself  in 
the  highest  form  of  holy  asceticism  in  those  who  are  conse- 
crated to  her  Master  in  her  cloisters.  And  as  it  is  in  the  Church 
of  God,  so  is  it  with  the  interior  character  of  the  glorious  man 
who  stands  at  the  helm  and  guides  the  ship  of  the  Church." 

Pius  is  a  man  of  faith.  He  has  been  ruined  by  showing  his 
faith  in  his  own  people  ;  in  the  faith  of  the  heart  of  Italy ;  in 
the  faith  and  integrity  of  the  Italian  people — that  was  human 
faith,  and  it  was  destroyed  and  crumbled  away  before  him  by 
the  ingratitude  of  his  own  Roman  people  ;  but  he  had  a  higher 
faith  in  God  ;  he  leaned  upon  God  with  the  most  implicit  faith. 
From  the  day  of  his  coronation  to  this  hour  he  has*  lived  in 
faith ;  the  Church  has  always  rested  on  faith.  I  have  seen  him 
in  the  most  of  his  difficulties  ;  I  have  seen  him  when  Rome  was 


Pontificate  of  Pius  IX.  \\\ 

threatened  ;  when  the  bishops,  prelates,  and  cardinals  came  to 
him,  saying,  with  pallid  lips:  "  Holy  Father,  you  must  fly,  your 
life  is  in  danger."  And  I  have  heard  the  grand  old  Pontiff 
say  with  a  smile  of  supreme  confidence  on  his  face :  "  Where 
is  your  faith ;  remember  the  words  of  Christ :  '  Have  faith  in 
God,  and  if  you  have  that  you  can  say,  move  this  mountain, 
and  it  will  be  moved.'  "  Never  for  a  moment  did  his  divine 
faith  falter.  Firm  as  a  rock,  immovable  as  the  rock  upon 
which  the  Church  of  God  is  founded.  The  most  learned  men 
in  Europe  rose  up  and  departed  from  him  and  from  the  Church, 
and  he,  like  the  divine,  unerring  Master,  said  :  "  Will  you  also 
leave  me  ?  If  the  whole  world  leave  me,  my  faith  shall  never 
move."  Firm  as  a  rock  when  England  and  her  clergy  ap- 
proached him  in  a  spirit  of  compromise  and  only  asked  certain 
conditions,  when  they  would  yield  and  return  to  the  communion 
of  the  Catholic  Church.  The  answer  of  the  Pontiff  was : 
"  No  conditions,  no  compact  can  I  make  that  would  compro- 
mise the  deposit  of  the  Catholic  faith  ;  if  you  do  not  believe,  I 
can  never  receive  you  into  her  bosom." 

A  man  of  hope.  Oh  !  my  friends,  how  magnificently  strong 
is  the  hope  that  has  sustained  the  old  man  unto  the  extreme 
old  age  that  now  crowns  his  poor  venerable  head.  In  the 
midst  of  the  afflictions  that  would  have  broken  a  stronger  heart, 
when  the  temporal  crown  fell  from  his  brow,  and  the  hand  of 
Catholic  men  placed  upon  it  a  crown  of  thorns,  he  is  still 
sustained  with  a  mighty  hope  within  him.  Well  may  he  say 
with  the  apostle  :  "  We  are  saved  by  hope."  Still  he  remained 
at  his  post,  cheering  the  disconsolate,  animating  the  faltering, 
sending  out  his  word  from  year  to  year  to  the  earth,  proclaim- 
ing, "  I  am  here  a  prisoner  amongst  my  people  ;  but  I  know 
what  I  hope  for,  and  the  victory  and  the  triumph  shall  be  mine 
at  last." 

A  man  of  love — where  was  there  ever  a  man  with  charity  such 
as  his  ?  Oh  !  my  friends,  if  you  had  only  beheld  him  as  I  have 
often  seen  him,  descending  from  his  carriage  in  some  by-way 
of  Rome,  going  in  there  amongst  the  poor  people  ;  the  women 
coming  out  from  their  houses,  bringing  their  children  to  him  to 
receive  his  blessing ;  distributing  his  liberal  alms  himself  to  the 
poor,  their  gratitude  finding  vent  in  streaming  tears  as  they 
bowed  to  receive  his  benediction.     He  passed  amongst  them  as 


142  Pontificate  of  Phis  TX. 

the  very  personification  of  Him  who  walked  amidst  the  path- 
ways of  the  poor  in  the  fields  of  Judea  and  Galilee — a  man  of 
love.  As  well  have  I  often  watched  him  in  some  quiet  nook 
of  the  church,  surrounded  by  nobles  and  by  the  brilliant  digni- 
taries of  the  Church,  himself  the  idol  of  the  Romans  ;  the 
moment  he  came  before  the  presence  of  the  Blessed  Sacrament, 
amidst  the  smoke  of  incense  and  the  ascending  mass  of  cloud, 
the  old  man  prostrated  himself,  and  there  you  almost  saw  with 
the  eyes  of  the  body  the  heart  of  that  old  man  going  out  from 
him  upon  the  wings  of  love  and  enter  the  tabernacle,  and  hold 
communion — the  communion  of  charity — with  Jesus  Christ. 
The  tears  after  a  time  were  wont  to  stream  from  his  eyes ;  the 
aged  head  bowed  down,  scarcely  able  to  conceal  from  the  vulgar 
gaze  the  enraptured  expression  of  love  that  overspread  his 
countenance.  This  is  the  man  which  the  Church  of  God,  in 
the  midst  of  her  afflictions  and  joys,  upholds  and  obeys  in  this 
our  day. 

If  ever  there  was  an  exhibition  of  prudence  in  man,  it  was  in 
the  last  action  of  Pius  IX.  before  he  was  dethroned.  Prudence 
means  a  virtue,  my  friends,  that  is  capable  of  foreseeing  what  is 
to  come.  Prudentia  is  the  Latin  word  for  it.  It  means  pre- 
vision for  what  is  to  come.  We  say  that  is  prudence  when  a 
man  makes  a  good  investment  in  land.  He  buys  a  landed 
estate  that  is  out  of  the  way,  because  he  foresees  that  in  a  few 
years  it  may  be  of  immense  value  ;  it  becomes  built  upon  and 
streets  opened  to  it,  then  people  say:  "What  a  prudent  man 
he  was  ;  "  and  men  say  more  than  this :  "  What  a  foreseeing 
man  he  was." 

Prudence  means  foresight.  Very  few  men  have  this  virtue 
in  its  highest  degree.  There  is  a  prudence  that  keeps  a  man 
from  the  ordinary  little  battling  worries  of  life  ;  but  the  pru- 
dence that  is  the  highest  of  all,  that  rises  up  on  the  wings  of 
intelligence,  soaring  like  the  eagle,  beyond  and  over  the  ordi- 
nary interests  of  mankind,  is  able  to  take  an  eagle  glance  of  the 
things  going  on  and  prepare  for  them — this  magnificent  pru- 
dence is  the  inheritance  of  the  Popes  of  Rome.  The  learned 
Dr.  Newman,  perhaps  the  most  learned  man  on  the  earth, 
speaking  of  the  Popes  and  their  action  on  society,  says; 
"  Their  leading  virtue  was  prudence."  It  was  their  prevision 
that  met  and  disarmed  the  mighty  barbaric  hordes  that  broke 


Pontificate  of  Pius  IX,  143 

up  the  Roman  Empire.  It  was  their  prevision  that  enabled 
the  State  to  defend  itself  against  the  Turks,  and  save  Christen- 
dom from  the  degrading  yoke  of  the  Mohammedan  religion.  It 
was  by  their  prudence  that  they  were  enabled  to  save  the  rock 
of  Catholicity  from  out  the  confusion  of  the  French  Revolution  ; 
but  never,  in  the  history  of  the  Church  of  God,  is  there  an  act 
of  such  supreme  prevision  as  the  act  of  the  last  Council  of 
Rome,  when  the  whole  Church  of  God  assembled,  and,  repre- 
sented by  its  eight  hundred  bishops,  declared,  as  a  dogma  of  the 
Catholic  faith,  that  the  Pope  possessed  personal  infallibility  as 
the  head  of  the  Church. 

Let  me  prove  this.  When  that  definition  was  pronounced,  and 
after  the  old,  original,  acknowledged  faith  of  the  Catholics  was 
put  in  the  form  of  a  dogma — an  article  of  faith — how  few  thought 
of  what  has  come  to  pass  since  the  day  when  that  dogma  was 
defined — when  your  bishops,  and  all  the  bishops  of  the  world  were 
assembled.  I  was  in  Rome  at  the  time.  I  witnessed  everything. 
I  never  thought  that  the  Pope  was  so  near  the  loss  of  his  tem- 
poral dominions.  No  bishop  or  cardinal  thought  it.  We  could 
not  understand  the  whole  thing;  we  could  not  understand  why 
that  council  was  called,  and  pressed  on  so  by  the  Pope  himself. 
We  did  not  foresee  that  a  Bismarck  would  arise,  like  another 
Antichrist,  to  persecute  the  Church  of  God ;  we  did  not  foresee 
the  downfall  of  France,  and  the  triumphant  revolution  of  Italy, 
with  the  deprivation  of  the  temporal  power  to  the  Pope,  and 
the  possible  expulsion  of  the  person  of  his  successor  from 
Rome.  These  things  no  man  foresaw,  except  one  ;  no  man 
saw  what  was  coming ;  but  a  prudence  more  than  human  pre- 
pared the  Church  for  the  emergency. 

For  nearly  two  thousand  years  the  Pope  has  been  in  Rome. 
Surrounded  by  the  prestige  of  his  temporal  power,  he  represent- 
ed, as  Pontiff  of  Rome,  palpably  and  visibly,  the  Church  of  God. 
He  was  recognized  by  the  whole  Church.  It  was  easy  to  know 
him,  easy  to  find  him  ;  he  was  like  a  light  burning  in  a  candle- 
stick, lighting  up  everything.  The  kings  of  Europe  recognized 
him.  But  take  him  out  of  Rome,  send  him  an  exile  amongst 
men,  send  him  a  stricken  wanderer  on  the  earth,  without  the 
prestige  of  his  temporal  power — perhaps  limited  by  those  dia- 
bolical persecutors,  those  crowned  tyrants,  those  kings,  prime 
ministers,  warring  against  the  Church — then  would  come  ruin 


144  Pontificate  of  Pius  IX. 

and  confusion  in  his  Church.  The  bishops  might  be  tempted 
to  rebel.  The  Church  is  full  of  examples  of  bishops  who  have 
from  time  to  time  rebelled  against  the  Pope.  Now,  when  the 
storm  was  coming,  the  spiritual  authority  of  the  Pope  was  put 
in  form  and  recognized  directly  as  from  God. 

His  infallible  authority  from  God  is  required  to  be  the  very 
central  bond  of  the  Church  in  the  days  of  her  weakness  that 
has  come  upon  her.  Almighty  God  inspired  this  man  with  the 
thought  that  the  moment  had  come  for  the  Church  to  commit 
herself,  to  set  that  sign  upon  her  Pontiff  which,  wherever  he  is, 
in  exile  or  in  misery,  no  other  man  can  tear  away — the  sign 
of  this  personal  infallibility,  dogmatically  recognized,  in  the 
head  of  the  Catholic  Church. 

He  now  can  enforce  his  decrees — they  are  the  Curia  Romafia. 
He  cannot  now,  as  in  the  Middle  Ages,  call  a  secular  army  to 
enforce  his  decrees.  He  cannot  now  lean  on  the  loyalty  of 
king  or  kaiser — they  have  all  turned  against  him  ;  all  are  his 
enemies.  Yet  the  moment  when  every  human  aid,  when  every 
human  faculty,  every  human  prestige  was  withdrawn  from  him, 
the  heavens  were  opened,  and  the  dogma  of  infallibility  was 
let  down  upon  his  head  from  the  bosom  of  Jesus  Christ,  the 
God  of  truth  ;  accepted  by  the  Church,  acclaimed  by  the  Church, 
it  shines  out  upon  the  uncrowned  head  of  the  Church's  mon- 
arch, Pius  IX.,  as  the  grandest  Pope  that  ever  lived,  and  re- 
ceived the  dogmatic  recognition  of  the  Holy  Church  of  God  of 
his  infallibility  as  her  head. 

Now,  he  may  go  from  Rome  to-morrow,  and  hide  himself  in 
any  corner  of  the  earth — he  may  go,  pursued  by  the  blood- 
hounds of  tyranny  and  revolution — but  now,  at  least,  we  know 
that  when  he  speaks  to  the  Church,  no  prince,  no  nation,  no 
bishop  can  for  an  instant  cavil  at  his  decision  without  inherit- 
ing the  wrath  of  God  and  the  curse  of  heresy  and  separation 
from  the  Catholic  Church. 

His  justice  !  One  of  the  greatest  charges  that  history  makes 
against  some  of  the  popes  of  the  Middle  Ages  is,  that  they 
had  great  power  and  great  wealth,  and  were  fond  of  their  rela- 
tives, as  every  man  is — they  allowed  the  ties  of  nature  to  be- 
come so  strong  that  they  enriched  some  of  their  relatives.  It 
was  called  nepotism.  Injustice  is  charged,  and  the  Church  is 
looked  down  upon,  and  some  people  imagine  that  the  Pope  is 


Pontificate  of  Pius  IX.  145 

impeccable — the  Pope  cannot  make  a  mistake.  Pius  IX.  may 
take  some  man  and  make  a  bishop  of  him,  who  is,  perhaps,  un- 
worthy ;  the  Church  would  not  approve  of  it.  Nor  is  he  infal- 
lible in  his  actions  ;  but  only  when  he  teaches  the  Church  the 
word  of  God,  to  accept  universally  that  teaching  from  its  Head, 
then  and  only  then. 

Mark  the  grand  character,  the  rigid,  exact  justice  of  this  aged 
man,  which  I  will  describe  to  you.  He  was  made  Pope  six- 
and  twenty  years  ago.  He  had  several  brothers  with  large  fam- 
ilies, and  their  friends  came  to  them  felicitating  and  congratu- 
lating with  them,  and  said  to  them  :  "  Now  that  your  uncle  is 
made  Pope,  of  course  you  will  get  an  estate,  or  something  or 
another."  You  know  this  business  of  nepotism  came  up  again 
amongst  them.  Well,  the  nephews  and  cousins  thought  they 
had  nothing  to  do  but  to  go  to  Rome  and  see  if  the  uncle  would 
do  anything  for  them.  The  very  first  thing  that  Pius  IX.  did, 
as  soon  as  he  was  made  Pope,  was  to  make  a  law  that  no 
relatives  of  his  were  to  enter  the  gates  of  Rome.  He  stands 
before  his  enemies  to-day,  and  not  one  of  them  has  accused 
Pius  IX.  of  nepotism  or  injustice. 

His  temperance !  He  don't  know  the  meaning  of  what 
you  call  the  temperance  that  keeps  you  from  getting  drunk- 
Pius  IX.  is  six-and-twenty  years  Pope.  During  these  six-and- 
twenty  years,  he  has  eaten  and  drunk  so  moderately  that  his 
personal  expenses  for  eating,  drinking,  and  clothing  costs  but 
one  hundred  and  twenty  pounds  a  year — that  is,  six  hundred 
dollars  a  year  to  keep  him  in  food,  drink,  clothing,  and  personal 
expenses.  The  Queen  of  England  has  one  thousand  pounds  a 
year  for  every  pound  Pius  IX.  had  when  ruler  of  Rome ;  and 
whether  she  spends  it  or  not,  she  takes  it  all. 

His  fortitude  !  We  have  already  seen  by  the  '*  non  possiimus** 
that  he  is  one  of  the  strongest,  bravest,  most  heroic  men  that 
ever  sat  peaceably  upon  the  throne  of  Peter,  in  that  part,  be- 
yond all  others,  which  successive  Popes  have  been  obliged  to 
accept — the  part  of  a  fortitude  which  no  power  of  earth  nor 
hell  could  overcome. 

He  is  dear  to  the  Catholic  world,  to  the  Irish  world.  To 
the  Catholic  world  he  is  especially  dear,  inasmuch  as  a  grace  was 
given  to  him  that  was  preserved  for  him  for  nearly  two  thousand 
years,  the  grace  that  was  never  vouchsafed  to  any  other  Pope ; 

10 


146  Pontificate  of  Pius  IX. 

the  grace  which,  Hke  every  grace  that  is  divine,  makes  him  sin- 
gular among  all  the  other  Pontiffs  ;  a  grace  that  was  preserved 
for  him  in  the  mind  and  councils  of  God  from  all  eternity, 
namely,  that  the  woman  whom  the  evangelist  saw  crowned  in 
heaven  with  a  crown  of  twelve  stars — the  woman  whom  Al- 
mighty God  spoke  of  as  the  crowned  woman  who  was  to  crush 
the  serpent's  head — the  woman  who  was  crowned  with  the  blood 
of  her  Divine  Son,  that  fell  upon  her  head  from  the  bleeding 
hands  which  were  stretched  out  over  her  on  Calvary — should  re- 
ceive from  the  hands  of  Pius  IX.,  in  his  dogmatic  definition,  the 
last  crown  that  the  Church  of  God  could  put  upon  her  head,  in 
the  proclamation  of  The  Immaculate  Conception  of  the  Blessed 
Virgin. 

Twelve  hundred  years  ago,  a  heretic  denied  that  Mary  was 
the  Mother  of  God.  The  moment  that  these  words  passed  the 
lips  of  Nestorius  the  whole  Catholic  world  was  moved  as  one. 
Every  man  and  every  woman  felt  it  as  a  personal  insult.  They 
called  for  a  council,  and  a  council  was  held  in  the  city  of  Ephe- 
sus.  The  bishops  came  from  all  parts  of  the  world  ;  the  people 
came  from  all  the  nations,  and  the  great  city  was  filled  with 
an  excited,  alarmed,  and  indignant  throng,  waiting  in  their 
thousands  outside  the  council  chamber.  At  the  moment  that 
they  declared  by  a  dogmatic  decree  that  the  Virgin  Mary  was 
the  Mother  of  God,  such  was  the  impatience  of  the  people 
that  a  bishop  came  out  and  told  them,  "  It  is  decreed,  and  it 
is  Catholic  faith,  that  the  Virgin  Mary  is  the  Mother  of  God." 
And  the  people  received  it  with  a  shout  and  clamor ;  the 
Catholic  heart  expanded  ;  like  an  electric  flash  it  M^ent  from 
land  to  land,  and  the  churches  proclaimed  Mary's  divine  ma- 
ternity, and  the  whole  Catholic  Church  was  filled  with  joy. 
Why }  Because  one  of  the  wants  of  the  Catholic  Church  is 
love  and  veneration,  quick,  ardent,  personal  love  for  the  Blessed 
Virgin  Mary.  Most  singular  it  is !  The  Gospel  says,  inspired 
by  God  :  the  Evangelist  tells  us  that  Mary,  inspired  by  God, 
said  :  "  Henceforth  all  generations  shall  call  me  blessed."  Re- 
member, that  is  in  the  Gospel  that  all  believe.  Every  Christian 
that  reads  the  Gospel  believes  that  all  generations  should  call 
Mary  blessed.  Yet,  strange  to  say,  outside  the  Catholic 
Church  she  has  not  received  any  title.  She  is  called  the  Virgin 
— any  name  you  like.     And  sometimes  we  are  called  blasphe- 


Pontificate  of  Pius  IX.  147 

mous — I  will  not  say  by  foolish  men  or  by  irreverent  men,  yet  the 
drift  of  the  Gospel  shows  that  the  Catholic  Church  must  be  the 
Church  of  the  Gospel,  for  the  Catholic  Church  alone  calls  Mary 
"Blessed." 

My  friends,  the  spirit  that  was  awakened  by  Nestorius  twelve 
hundred  years  ago  broke  out  again  in  this  nineteenth  century, 
and  the  whole  Catholic  world,  with  one  voice,  cried  out  in  ac- 
clamation with  the  word  of  Pius  IX.,  that  Mary  had  never  sinned. 
By  divine  preventing  grace  and  the  anticipated  application  of 
the  merits  and  the  blood  of  her  Divine  Son,  she  was  preserved 
from  sin,  and  even  Adam  himself  did  not  sin  in  Mary,  You 
will  ask  me,  Why  was  this  defined .''  Ah  !  behold  the  prudence 
and  the  wisdom  of  the  Pontiff!  In  this  age  of  ours  there  is  a 
spirit  of  insubordination  to  authority,  to  prevent  which  and 
connect  the  whole  came  this  dogma  of  infallibility.  Outside  of 
us — the  Catholic  Church — the  world  is  drifting  very  rapidly  to 
the  denial  of  the  divinity  of  Jesus  Christ.  Protestantism  to-day 
in  every  land  is  assuming  the  form  which  is  called  "  Unitarian  ;  " 
and  it  is  the  boast  of  the  Unitarians  that  they  are  disturbing  the 
views  of  all  that  is  intellectual  and  all  that  is  spiritual  in  Protes- 
tantism. Every  Protestant  writer  nowadays  is  speculating 
about  the  divinity  of  Christ ;  every  great  preacher — read  their 
lectures  and  sermons  in  the  New  York  papers,  and  you  will  see 
discussed  the  divinity  of  Jesus  Christ.  It  is  an  open  question, 
and  some  believe  that  time  will  destroy  the  belief  in  the  divinity 
of  Jesus  Christ — the  very  corner-stone  on  which  the  Christian  re- 
ligion is  founded.  I  may  call  myself  a  Christian  ;  so  may  the  Sultan 
of  Turkey  ;  so  may  the  Emperor  of  China  call  himself  a  Christian 
— as  good  and  just  as  much  of  a  Christian  as  any  other.  The 
Protestant  who  denies  the  divinity  of  Jesus  Christ  is  no  more 
entitled  to  call  himself  a  Christian  than  the  Emperor  of  China, 
who  is  a  Pagan.  The  Emperor  of  China  has  just  as  good  a 
right  to  call  himself  a  Christian  as  any  man  who  doubts  or  de- 
nies the  divinity  of  Jesus  Christ. 

Now,  the  Church  surrounded  that  mystery  of  the  Incarna- 
tion with  every  form  of  dogmatic  defense  that  could  be  de- 
vised, and  threw  a  rampart  of  eternal  truth  about  Him  who  is 
the  divine  author  of  all  truth.  One  thing  alone  remained,  one 
of  the  arguments  used  to  deny  the  divinity,  and  shake  the  faith 
of  those  who  believe  in  the  divinity  of  Jesus  Christ.     It  was 


148  Pontificate  of  Pius  IX. 

that  He  was  the  son  of  Mary.  Men  said,  "  How  can  you  say 
He  is  God  ?  He  is  the  son  of  Mary.  Mary  was  the  daughter 
of  Adam.  Adam  was  a  sinner.  Consequently,  how  could  God 
be  born  of  a  sinner  ? "  There  was  the  argument.  How  was 
the  Church  of  God  to  meet  it?  She  had  to  assert  dogmatically 
that  Mary  was  the  Mother  of  God,  and  that  Mary  was  immacu- 
late in  her  conception.  Pius  came  forth  at  the  head  of  the 
Episcopacy  and  proclaimed  to  the  world  :  "  Let  no  man  say 
that  Jesus  Christ  is  not  God,  because  Mary  was  His  mother. 
I  declare,  in  the  name  of  God  and  of  our  Church,  that  that 
woman,  though  a  child  of  earth,  had  never  sinned.  Even  in 
her  conception  she  was  freed  from  pollution,  in  order  to  be  the 
Mother  of  God."  And  thus  did  the  Church  place  the  last 
crowning  stone  of  that  edifice  of  defense  of  the  divinity  of  our 
Lord,  by  proclaiming  the  Immaculate  Conception  of  Mary. 

Catholics  are  assured  that  there  is  no  one  higher  than  the 
Pope  except  God.  God  governs  the  Church  through  the  Pope ; 
therefore,  there  is  no  appeal  from  the  Church,  and  it  has  been 
the  recognized  doctrine  of  the  Catholic  Church  from  the  day 
she  was  founded  to  this  hour,  that  there  is  no  appeal  from  the 
Pope;  therefore,  he  is  the  ultimate  tribunal  of  the  body  that  is 
passing  sentence  by  the  Almighty  God,  to  all  men,  of  all  the 
truth  forever.  Mark  this,  the  Catholic  Church  has  always 
taught,  of  necessity,  that  she  cannot  teach  a  lie ;  the  Catholic 
Church  has  always  taught  she  is  bound  to  obey  the  word  of  her 
head,  her  Pontiff;  therefore,  the  Pontiff,  when  he  is  teaching 
that  Church,  cannot  tell  her  a  lie ;  for  if  he  did,  the  Catholic 
Church  would  be  bound  to  accept  the  lie,  and  bound  to  obey. 
She  cannot  accept  a  lie,  for  Christ,  her  Lord,  has  said:  "  I  am 
God,  and  the  gates  of  hell  shall  never  prevail  against  her." 
Therefore,  though  a  traitor  be  the  head  of  the  Church,  he 
cannot  teach  the  Church  of  God  or  command  her  to  believe  a 
lie. 

Every  State,  my  friends,  every  nation,  has  its  ultimate  tribunal 
from  which  there  is  no  appeal.  For  instance,  if  you  go  to  law 
with  a  man  in  England  or  in  Ireland,  if  the  judges  decide  against 
you,  you  can  appeal  to  a  higher  court,  and  if  a  higher  court  give 
it  against  you,  you  can  appeal  to  the  House  of  Lords,  but  if  the 
House  of  Lords  be  against  you,  you  are  bound  to  submit ;  there 
is  no  other  appeal.     But  if  the  Almighty  God  establishes  upon 


Pontificate  of  Pius  IX.  149 

earth  an  arbiter  that  never  could  act  unjustly,  then  you  would 
be  obliged  to  say  the  decision  must  be  just.  I  have  no  appeal 
from  it.  Now,  God  says  that  the  Catholic  Church  can  never 
believe  a  lie  or  teach  a  lie,  and  the  Catholic  Church  is  bound 
by  the  decision  of  the  Pope,  and  there  is  no  appeal  from  it ;  and, 
therefore,  she  believes  she  cannot  tell  a  lie.  This  is  the  first 
attribute  of  the  Pope,  Now,  consider  this,  my  friends.  Infalli- 
bility ;  impossibility  of  teaching  a  lie  ;  impossibility  of  making 
a  mistake  in  the  matter  of  doctrines  in  the  Universal  Church. 
Why,  it  happens  that  this  brings  him  so  near  to  the  Almighty 
God,  that,  before  Him,  as  he  stands  there  as  the  Head  of  the 
Church,  all  the  rest  of  mankind  dwindles  into  nothing.  He 
stands  there  and  he  speaks  ;  he  says  to  the  Church  :  "  Hear 
me,  O  Church  of  Jesus  Christ !  Hear  me  !  "  And  the  whole 
of  the  Church  says,  "  I  will  hear  what  my  ruler  speaks  to  me." 
Infallible  Church  bows  down  before  him  and  says,  "  Speak  thou 
for  the  Church.  Thy  servant  hears."  He  speaks,  and  the 
moment  he  opens  his  lips  with  dogmatic  utterance — I  no  longer 
see  in  him  a  man — I  only  hear  the  voice  of  a  man  ;  but  I  see 
reflected  the  infallible  light  of  God,  and  hear  the  word  of  Jesus 
Christ  through  his  lips.  In  the  word  of  which,  it  is  written : 
"  Heaven  and  earth  shall  pass  away."  It  is  simply  awful  to 
consider  a  man  invested  with  so  much  of  the  attributes  of 
God. 

The  second  great  official  attribute  of  the  Pope  is  supreme  au- 
thority over  cardinals,  archbishops,  bishops,  priests,  laymen, 
and  every  other  man  that  professes  the  Catholic  doctrines.  The 
Pope  exercises  unlimited  authority  in  religious  matters — re- 
member, I  say  in  religious  matters — in  spiritual  matters  we  are 
all  bound  to  obey  him,  the  highest  dignitary  of  the  Church. 
The  moment  a  man  contradicts  a  word  of  the  Pope,  or  rebels 
against  it,  be  he  bishop  or  priest,  not,  of  course,  in  the  essence 
of  his  ordination,  but  in  the  legitimacy  of  its  exercise,  he  is  an 
absolute  heretic,  and  goes  out  from  the  Church.  He  may  be 
the  most  learned  man  in  the  world,  the  greatest  philosopher,  a 
man  of  the  greatest  popularity,  wielding  a  whole  people  and 
shaping  their  destinies  ;  at  that  moment  there  is  an  end  to  him. 
Not  a  man  amongst  us,  not  the  humblest  Catholic  in  the  world, 
will  touch  him  or  have  any  more  to  say  to  him. 

Now,  in  order  to  have  these  official  attributes,  you  can  easily 


ISO  Pontificate  of  Pius  IX. 

imagine  that  the  Almighty  God,  who  guides  that  election  of 
the  h  ad  of  the  Church,  will  select  a  great  man,  a  man  whose 
sanctity  of  life,  whose  purity  of  heart,  whose  devotion  to  the 
altar  and  the  Church,  will,  in  some  degree,  fit  him  for  that  mag- 
nificent dignity.  And,  in  truth,  the  proof  of  this  lies  in  the 
fact,  that  although  we  have  had  a  succession  of  hundreds  of 
Popes,  going  through  the  ages  of  history,  side  by  side  with 
their  contemporaries,  though  many  of  them  had  their  faults, 
and  though  many  of  them  committed  sins,  yet,  taken  in  the 
whole,  they  are  as  far  beyond  the  kings  and  emperors  with 
whom  they  lived,  in  sanctity  and  purity  of  life,  in  education 
and  grandeur  of  character,  as  they  were  beyond  other  men  in 
their  imperial  power. 

In  that  long  roll  I  claim  that  up  to  this  sad  century  of  ours, 
since  the  day  Peter  received  the  keys  from  Christ,  that  never 
have  those  keys  been  held  by  a  nobler  character,  by  a  grander 
man  than  the  aged  Pius  IX.  who  governs  us  to-day. 

For  the  proof  of  this  only  look  over  the  pontificate  with  me 
in  some  of  the  salient  points.  You  know,  my  friends,  that  it  is 
now  six-and-twenty  years  since  Pius  IX.  was  elected  to  be  the 
Pope  and  Head  of  the  Catholic  Church.  He  is  the  only  man  of 
all  those  that  succeeded  St.  Peter  who  has  outlived  the  years  of 
Peter  upon  the  pontifical  throne  of  Rome.  It  was  considered 
a  kind  of  proverb  in  the  Church  that  no  Pope  should  live  as 
many  years  in  his  papacy  as  St.  Peter,  who  lived  twenty-five 
years.  Pius  IX.  was  the  first  Pope  who  has  outlived  the  years 
of  Peter.  I  was  in  Rome  as  a  youth  in  the  first  year  of  the 
pontificate  of  this  man.  I  am  speaking  to  you  this  evening  not 
of  things  that  I  have  read  in  books,  or  that  I  have  heard  from 
other  men.  I  am  speaking  of  a  country  in  which  I  have  lived 
the  best  years  of  my  life — of  Italy  and  the  city  of  Rome.  I 
am  speaking  of  the  things  tha/:  I  have  seen  and  judged  of  with 
my  own  mind.  I  saw,  in  1847  i^"  Rome,  a  fair  young  man — his 
hair  was  black  as  the  raven's  wing;  his  eye  was  bright  with  the 
commingled  beauty  of  the  pure  soul  that  shone  through  it ; 
and  the  manly  vigor  of  his  form — for  this  man  was  educated  in 
his  youth  for  a  soldier — stately,  kingly,  more  than  kingly  even 
in  his  physical  appearance  ;  he  seemed  a  man  every  inch  fit  to 
be  a  ruler  of  his  fellow-men ;  with  a  conformation  and  a  form, 
indeed,  where  the  very  God  had  seemed  to  set  the  seal  and  give 


Pontificate  of  Pius  IX.  i  $  i 

the  world  assurance  of  a  man.  I  saw  him  on  that  day,  when 
my  young  eyes,  fresh  from  the  green  isle  of  Erin,  full  of  Irish 
faith,  of  love,  as  I  looked  with  a  timid  glance  on  the  Vicar  of 
Christ — on  that  day  when  he  was  surrounded  by  the  plaudits 
of  the  Roman  and  Italian  people. 

The  whole  world  echoed  the  praises  of  Pius  IX.  The  King 
of  Italy,  the  archdukes  of  Italy,  the  kings  of  the  various  na- 
tions of  Europe,  were  loud  in  their  praises  of  the  new  Pope. 
Even  here  in  America  the  echoes  of  his  praise  were  caught  up, 
and  by  the  most  eloquent  tongue  proclaimed — the  tongue  of 
America's  last,  though  not  least,  of  her  statesmen  or  philoso- 
phers, over  whose  grave  the  nation  is  weeping  to-day.  Why 
did  they  praise  him  ?  Ah,  my  friends,  they  praised  him  for  the 
act  by  which  he  began  his  pontificate,  in  which  he  showed  the 
genius  and  the  character  of  this  noble-minded  man  when  he 
came  to  the  throne.  There  had  been  trouble  for  years  before 
in  Italy,  and  he  found  many  of  the  Italian  people,  his  own  sub- 
jects, languishing  in  prison  for  their  rebellion,  or  attempt  at 
revolution,  and  for  their  unquiet  dispositions.  He  found  that 
many  of  them  were  in  exile,  some  living  in  Paris,  some  in  Lon- 
don, and  some  here  in  America.  What  was  the  first  act  of  the 
new  Pontiff?  The  moment  the  tiara  was  on  his  head,  and  the 
sceptre  of  his  apostolic  reign  in  his  hand,  the  first  sentence  he 
uttered  as  a  monarch,  was  :  "  Open  that  gate  and  let  them  out ; 
come  back,  you  exiles  in  every  foreign  land  ;  come  back  to  your 
own  blue  sky  and  sunny  soil ;  come  back  to  the  bosom  of  Italy. 
I  am  not  so  much  your  king  as  your  father,  and  I  will  trust  my 
self  to  the  love,  to  the  deep  gratitude,  and  to  the  affection  of 
that  people."  This  act  I  witnessed.  I  saw  the  exiles  return 
and  bathe  the  hand  of  their  liberator  with  grateful  tears.  I 
saw  the  eyes  of  the  little  children  whose  fathers  came  back  to 
them  from  out  the  dungeons  and  the  prisons  rejoicing  under 
the  smile  of  the  man  whose  hand  had  unbarred  those  prison 
gates. 

The  whole  world  rejoiced,  but  Pius  IX.  was  destined  to  know 
the  vanity  and  the  folly  of  human  popularity.  Oh,  thrice  fool- 
ish is  the  man  who  would  build  a  house,  or  his  life,  or  his  soul 
on  such  frail,  sandy  foundations  as  the  applause  and  plaudits 
of  men.  Thrice  befooled  is  the  man  that  grasps  for  such  glory, 
for  God  will  permit   him,  even   in  this  world,  to  outlive  the 


152  Pontificate  of  Pius  IX. 

breath  of  his  passing  fame.  And  unless  he  has  built  his  hope, 
his  reputation,  his  character,  his  soul,  on  some  more  solid,  un- 
shaken foundation,  then  all  will  crumble  to  ruin,  and  the  aged 
man  will  live  to  weep  over  the  words  of  praise  that  had  resound- 
ed in  his  ear  in  thunder-tones  from  the  plaudits  of  men.  That 
word  is  like  the  morning  summer  wind  that  moves  the  foliage 
of  the  acacia-tree,  then  passes  away  to  salute  some  other  hill- 
side, and  refresh  some  other  field.  Pius  IX.  knew  it.  I  saw 
him  silent  and  unmoved.  He  saw  and  recognized  it,  even  as 
my  young  eye  did  the  grandeur  of  that  character,  because  of 
the  depth  of  his  humility,  for  men  were  disposed  to  raise  him 
higher  and  higher  in  popular  estimation,  and  called  out  that 
he  was  the  saviour  of  men,  and  that  there  never  was  such 
a  Pontiff  on  that  throne.  I  saw,  as  the  shouts  of  their  ap- 
plause grew  louder  and  filled  in  a  wider  circle  of  the  ambient 
air,  that  the  object  of  that  applause  went  down  deeper,  visibly 
deeper,  in  the  depths  of  his  own  personal  nothingness  and  hu- 
mility, humbling  himself  before  God.  Then  was  I  reminded, 
looking  upon  him,  of  the  words  of  the  royal  prophet  of  Israel, 
"  I  swear,"  he  said,  "  that  the  more  the  Lord  my  God  shall  lift 
me  up,  the  more  will  I  humble  myself,  and  will  cast  myself  down 
before  Him."  That  humility  came  in  order  to  preserve  him ; 
for  if  the  man  had  built  on  the  foundation  of  his  splendid 
character,  and  the  passing  praise  of  the  hour,  he  would  have 
crumbled  to  ruin,  and  his  heart  would  have  broken  under  the 
reverses  that  God  sent  him.  In  a  few  years  the  same  people 
that  cried  his  name  with  acclamation  on  that  occasion,  turned 
against  him,  and  demanded  entrance,  with  their  cannons,  at  his 
palace  gate  ;  that  he  should  meet  a  revolutionary  principle,  incon- 
sistent with  his  position,  and  inconsistent  with  their  own  salva- 
tion and  happiness  ;  and  the  ungrateful  children  whom  the  Holy 
Father  had  brought  forth  from  their  prison-houses,  whom  he 
called  from  the  land  of  their  exile,  made  use  of  the  liberty  he 
gave  them,  and  drove  him  into  exile. 

Then  came  the  second  great  trial  in  this  man's  life.  A  few 
years  ago  a  Catholic  servant-girl  in  a  Jewish  family,  in  Bologna, 
took  a  little  child  newly  born  and  baptized  him,  secretly,  with- 
out telling  the  parents.  Now,  my  friends,  you  must  know  that 
the  Catholic  Church  does  not  allow  this.  The  Catholic  Church 
teaches  two  things.     First  of  all,  it  teaches  as  to  divine  faith, 


Pontificate  of  Pius  IX.  153 

that  by  baptism  the  child  thus  baptized  becomes  the  brother 
or  sister  of  Jesus  Christ,  incorporated   in  him  by  divine  grace, 
appropriated  to  God  as  a  child  of  God.     That  little  child  that 
was  born  was  the  child  of  Adam,  the  child  of  sin.     "We  are  all 
born  children  of  wrath,"  says  St,  Paul.     It  is  an  article  of  Cath- 
olic faith,  that  when  the  water  of  baptism  touches  the  child's 
head,  that  little  child  becomes  a  child   of  God.     The  Catholic 
Church  teaches   us  that  the  moment  that  child  is  baptized  it 
becomes  a  member  of  the   Church  of  God.     Consequently,  He 
grasps  that  little  one  and  asserts  His  claim  upon  it.     The  Cath- 
olic Church  teaches,  on  the  other  hand,  that  the  parents  have  a 
right  over  the  child,   and   if  the  parents  are  infidels  or  Jews, 
and  if  they  refuse  to  have  their  child   baptized,   the   Church 
does  not  coerce.     The   Church  respects  the  parents'  right,  and 
says,  "  Although  I  come  into  this  world  to  spread  the  kingdom 
of  God,  still,  if  the  father  and  mother  refuse  it  for  their  child, 
I  must  respect  their  rights."     That  is  the  Catholic  doctrine. 
Therefore  the  Church  says,  "  If  any  one  baptizes  the  child  of  a 
Jew,  or  an  infidel,  without  the  parents'  consent,  that  person  is 
guilty  of  a  grievous  sin  ;   nay,  more,  the  Church  threatens  with 
her  censure  of  excommunication  such  a  person.     The  servant- 
girl  in  question  committed  a  grievous  sin,   and  fell  under  the 
censure  of  the  Catholic  Church  ;  but  the  Catholic  Church  had 
to  acknowledge  the   fact  that  the  child  was  baptized.     What 
followed  fromi  this?    It  followed  that  the  Catholic  Church  was 
obliged   to  ask  the  parents  of  the  child  to  bring  it  up  a  Chris- 
tian, because  he  was  baptized  a  Christian.    The  parents  refused. 
Pius  IX.  was  the  temporal   sovereign,  and  these  Jews  were  his 
subjects ;  and  also,  as  the   head  of  the  Church,  Pius   IX.  was 
obliged,   by  the  doctrines  of  the  Catholic  Church,  and  by  her 
discipline,  to  secure  to  that  child  a  Christian  education  until  he 
was  seven  years  old,  and  could   decide  for  himself  whether  he 
would  continue  to  be  a  Christian,  or  go  back  to  the  religion  of 
his  parents.     The  parents  refused,  and  Pius  IX.  was  obliged  of 
necessity  to  put  the  child  under  the  care  of  a  Christian  teacher, 
until  the  hour  arrived  to  tell  him,  "  You  were  baptized  a  Chris- 
tian  secretly,  and  we  were  very  sorry  for  it.     The  person  who 
did  it  interfered  with   your  parents'  right  for  a  time,  but   does 
not   interfere  with  their  rights  for  the  time  to  come.     Will  you 
be  a  Christian?"     The  child  said:  "I  wish  to  be  a  Christian, 


154  Pontificate  of  Pius  IX. 

and  a  priest " — and  a  priest  he  is  to-day.  I  knew  him  in  Rome. 
The  Jewish  father  and  mother  appealed  to  the  different  nations 
in  Europe,  and  England  among  them  sent  word  to  Pius  IX. 
that  that  child  should  be  brought  up  a  Jew.  He  said:  "  I  can- 
not bring  up  the  child  a  Jew;  the  child  is  a  Christian.  How 
can  a  Christian  become  a  Jew?  "  "  Then  give  back  the  child," 
they  said,  "to  his  parents."  "I  cannot  do  it,"  he  answered; 
"  they  will  bring  him  up  a  Jew.  But  when  that  child  comes  to 
the  hour  of  reason,  he  may  go  back  to  them  if  he  likes.  They 
may  see  him,  and  love  him,  and  nourish  him.  I  will  leave  him 
with  them,  provided  they  give  him  his  choice,  and  let  him  be  a 
Christian,  if  the  grace  of  baptism  educate  him  in  that  direc- 
tion." They  would  not  do  it.  They  said  :  "  We  want  to  make 
him  a  Jew  " — a  personal  enemy  of  God,  in  whom  he  was  bap- 
tized. France  and  England  threatened  to  send  their  fleets  to 
bombard  the  Pope's  cities.  ''  We  will  drive  you  out  of  Rome  !  " 
The  old  Father  says  :  "  You  may  do  it.  I  cannot  help  that.  You 
may  do  more  than  that — you  may  pluck  this  heart  out  of  my 
body,  cut  off  this  head  of  mine,  shed  every  drop  of  blood  in  my 
veins  ;  but  there  is  one  thing  you  cannot  do,  and  I  cannot  do, 
and  that  is,  betray  Jesus  Christ  by  giving  up  that  child.  Nan 
posswnus !  "  he  answered — I  cannot  do  it.  He  did  not  say: 
"  I  do  not  wish  to  do  it — I  must  not  do  it."  He  says  :  "  I  can- 
not do  it !  " 

I  assert  that  the  Non  possiimiis  of  Pius  IX.  are  the  grandest 
words  that  ever  came  from  the  lips  of  man,  because  those  who 
were  not  Catholics  did  not  understand  it.  Those  who  were  not 
Catholics  did  not  understand  the  nature  of  baptism.  By  bap- 
tism we  become  one  with  Christ  ;  by  baptism  we  become  mem- 
bers of  the  Church  of  Christ.  All  those  who  were  not  Catholics 
did  not  understand  it.  He  said  to  them  :  "  You  may  make  the 
case  your  own,"  and  if  there  are  any  here  who  are  not  Catholics, 
let  them  just  realize  the  doctrine  of  baptism,  and  you  will  see 
at  once  that  the  Pope  could  not  do  anything  else,  and  that  Non 
possiiimis,  resounding  from  out  the  lips  of  Pius  IX.,  are  the  grand- 
est words  that  can  be  engraved  on  his  tomb  :  "  Here  lies  a  man 
whom  the  world  has  endeavored  to  coerce  into  sacrificing  the 
interest  of  Jesus  Christ  and  His  Church  ;  and  here  lies  a  man 
who  answered  :     *  Non  possumus  !  '  " — I  cannot  do  it. 

I  believe,  myself,   being  a  witness  of   these  facts — analyzing 


Pontijicate  of  Pius  IX.  155 

them — I  believe,  my  friends,  that  case  of  that  child  was  the  be- 
ginning of  the  troubles  that  have  issued  to-day  in  the  loss  of  the 
temporal  dominions  of  the  Pope  and  in  the  bloody  revolution. 
There  is  a  society  in  Europe  which  has  permeated  through  all 
ranks  in  all  the  nations,  and  has  found  its  way  into  every  grade 
of  society — in  fact,  has  honeycombed  and  burrowed  completely 
the  very  foundation  of  society  everywhere,  except  in  glorious 
Catholic  Ireland — and  that  society  is  called  the  Society  of  Free- 
masons. A  great  many  worthy  men  are  entrapped  into  that 
society,  because  they  do  not  know  its  real  meaning.  But  one 
of  the  fundamental  principles  of  European  Masonry  is  war 
against  the  throne  and  war  against  the  altar  of  God.  Against 
the  throne  that  war  was  waged  in  the  many  revolutions  that 
have  marked  the  latter  end  of  the  last  century  and  the  middle 
of  this  century.  The  war  against  the  altar  has  been  going  on 
in  every  nation  of  Europe — furious,  persistent,  terrible,  and  un- 
compromising war — since  the  days  that  Voltaire  wrote  "that  the 
last  of  the  kings  should  be  strangled  with  the  last  of  the  priests." 
Pius  IX.  represented  the  throne  as  temporal  ruler  of  Rome,  and 
represented  the  altar  as  head  of  the  Catholic  Church,  and  the 
consequence  is,  that  in  the  last  three-and-twenty  years  the  com- 
bined, united  efforts  of  Masonry  have  all  been  concentrated  on 
the  one  power  of  Pius  IX.,  the  representative  of  Jesus  Christ — 
against  him.  Even  the  Scribe  and  the  Pharisee  forgot  their 
hatred  and  their  differences,  that  they  might  combine  against 
Him — against  Him,  even  as  Pilate  and  Herod  made  up  their 
private  little  differences  and  became  friends  in  order  that  they 
might  combine  against  Him — ^just  as  against  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  every  discordant  element  in  Jerusalem  combined  to  put 
Him  to  death.  So  every  other  interest  of  Masonry  was  consid- 
ered secondary,  and  the  power  of  every  element  of  this  wide- 
spread society  was  all  concentrated  in  destroying  the  power  and, 
if  possible,  in  shedding  the  blood  of  the  Sovereign  Pontiff.  For 
twenty-three  years  he  has  stood  serenely  before  them  ;  for  twenty- 
three  years  he  has  met  all  their  scoffing  against  him.  They  suc- 
ceeded in  getting  up  an  unjust  war  against  him  ;  they  succeeded 
in  shedding  the  blood  of  the  gallant,  true-hearted  and  the 
brave  men  that,  shoulder  to  shoulder,  stood  around  the  old 
man's  throne,  though  they  were  but  one  to  a  thousand — yet 
still  they  fought  like  men,  and — blessed  be  God ! — Ireland's  arm 


156  Pontificate  of  Pius  IX. 

and  the  most  faithful  of  her  sons  were  around  him.  Against 
him,  they  succeeded  in  the  robbery  and  in  plundering  the  de- 
fenseless man  of  the  last  square  rood  of  his  inheritance,  and,  if 
possible,  to  bring  down  his  white  hairs  in  sorrow,  anguish,  and 
despair  to  the  grave. 

Worst  of  all,  against  him  to-day — a  sad  prisoner  in  the  aban- 
doned halls  of  the  Vatican — they  are  making  malicious  charges. 
Aye  !  false  as  hell — they  have,  within  the  last  two  months,  pub- 
lished in  Italy  and  reproduced  in  other  lands  their  books  and 
other  pamphlets — against  what,  do  you  think?  against  the  moral 
character  of  Pius  IX.  A  man  whose  reputation  is  as  stainless 
as  the  untrodden  snow.  A  man  whose  life  has  been  before  the 
world,  from  his  earliest  youth  to  his  extreme  old  age.  The  man 
who  has  lived  out  in  the  face  of  the  whole  world — the  man 
against  whom  his  bitterest  enemy  cannot  breathe  one  word  of 
slander — this  is  the  man  whose  character  they  are  trying  to  de- 
stroy after  they  have  destroyed  his  temporal  power  ;  but  what 
wonder  ?  When  the  Son  of  God  was  nailed  to  the  cross,  was 
He  not  there  expressly  charged  as  being  a  seducer  of  the  peo- 
ple and  a  malefactor  and  blasphemer  against  God?  Surely  the 
servant  cannot  expect  better  treatment  than  his  Master.  And 
yet,  my  friends,  if  we  go  a  little  deeper,  passing  from  these  ex- 
ternal agencies  that  act  upon  him,  passing  from  his  external 
character  as  the  head  of  the  Church,  what  a  magnificent  man  he 
is.  As  I  once  heard  an  old  woman  in  Ireland  say,  and  she  ex- 
pressed the  very  mind  of  the  Church,  "  Father  dear,  I  always 
believed  in  the  Pope,  but  I  never  loved  him  so  dearly  as  I  do 
now,  because  he  has  declared  that  the  Mother  of  God  was  con- 
ceived without  sin."  There  is  the  mind  of  the  Church;  the 
great  heart  of  the  spouse  of  Jesus  Christ  enlarges  itself  in  love 
towards  him  to  whom  God  gave  the  grace  and  the  fair  privilege 
of  declaring  Mary's  Immaculate  Conception.  Upon  that  love 
— almost  miraculously  singular,  Pius  IX.  has  sustained  himself 
up  to  this  day,  and  will  sustain  himself  until  that  heart  has 
passed  from  us  to  an  honored  sepulchre. 

From  Ireland,  my  native  land,  the  Sovereign  Pontiff,  Pius  IX., 
deserves  more  than  from  any  other  land.  I  love  him,  not  only  as 
a  Catholic,  because  he  has  proclaimed  the  Immaculate  Concep- 
tion of  Mary,  my  Mother ;  I  love  him,  not  only  as  a  priest,  be- 
cause, by  his  latest  defense  of  the   dogmatic    decision   of  the 


Pontificate  of  Pius  IX.  157 

Church  of  God  he  has  secured  to  me,  and  such  as  me,  forever 
and  forever,  the  hghts  that  never  can  pale.  He  has  given  us  a 
guiding  voice  that  no  man  can  contradict,  for  the  security  and 
certainty  of  our  faith  ;  but  I  love  him,  as  an  Irishman,  because, 
in  the  midst  of  his  sorrows  and  his  troubles,  he  had  time  to  think 
of  the  fidelity  and  the  love  of  the  Irish  people  for  their  holy  relig- 
ion, and  he  was  the  first  Pontiff  that  ever  rewarded  an  Irishman 
in  a  grand  and  royal  manner. 

Other  Popes  have  been  accused  of  caring  little  about  Ireland. 
One  of  them  has  been  accused  of  caring  so  little  about  Ireland 
as  to  throw  it  into  the  hands  of  Henry  II.  of  England,  saying 
to  him  :  "  Take  it  if  you  like  it."  But,  thanks  be  to  God,  I  have 
lived  to  see  that  proved  to  be  a  lie.  Mr.  Froude,  whatever  he 
takes  home  from  America,  will  take  home  one  thing  with  him, 
and  that  is  a  document  from  an  Irish  bishop — the  Bishop  of  Os^ 
sory — that  I  think  he  will  not  be  able  to  get  over.  And  that 
document  proves  to  demonstration  that  no  Pope  of  Rome  ever 
gave  Ireland  to  England.  What  the  domination  was  that  has 
been  carried  out,  through  blood  and  injustice,  and  was  begun  in 
perjury  and  lying,  has  now  become  a  matter  of  history.  And  I 
thank  God  for  it,  because  it  has  wiped  out  of  the  mind  of  many 
an  Irishman  the  uncomfortable  feeling  that  a  Pope  thought  so 
little  of  our  native  land  ;  thanks  be  to  God,  that  day  has  never 
dawned,  and  never  will ! 

Pius  IX.  gave  to  the  Irish  Church  her  first  Cardinal,  that  is  to 
say,  he  gave  to  the  Irish  Church  a  voice  in  all  earthly  councils, 
the  councils  that  assemble  to  ask  him  the  question  Samuel  asked 
when  David  was  brought  before  him,  "  Is  this  the  anointed  here 
before  the  Lord?"  When  the  question  comes  to  selecting  a 
Pope  as  the  Head  of  the  Catholic  Church,  when  the  question 
comes  of  bringing  out  three  or  four  men  without  any  prior  selec- 
tion, asking  the  Holy  Spirit  of  God — "  Is  this  the  anointed  that 
is  before  Thee,  O  Spirit  of  Truth?" — that  is  the  highest  council 
that  can  be  upon  the  earth,  and  for  fifteen  hundred  years 
every  nation  has  been  asked  to  join  in  that  important  question. 
Yet  Ireland — faithful,  suffering — never  had  been  summoned  until 
Pius  IX.  said  to  an  Irishman:  "Take  thy  place,  O  child  of 
a  martyr  race,  among  the  princes  of  the  Church  of  God,  and  thou 
shalt  be  among  those  that  shall  ask  the  question  of  the  Holy 
Spirit — who  shall  guide  this  Church?    And  if  the  answer  come, 


158  Pontificate  of  Pius  IX. 

the  son  of  Erin  !  then  the  son  of  Erin  has  the  right  to  bear  the 
Roman  Tiara." 

And,  in  making  his  selection,  he  pitched  upon  a  man  whom 
I  have  the  honor  and  privilege  of  knowing  intimately  and  well : 
have  lived  in  his  jurisdiction  for  many  a  year.  I  have  studied 
his  spirit,  and  I  will  say  this — I  say  it  from  the  conviction  of  my 
heart — that  in  raising  Paul  Cullen,  the  Archbishop,  to  the  dig- 
nity and  the  grandeur  of  a  Cardinalship,  Pius  IX.  laid  his  hand 
upon  the  head  of  as  true  and  as  loving  a  son  of  Ireland  as  ever 
lived.  Some  among  us  deny  this — a  privilege  that  we  claim  to 
ourselves ;  but  I  do  say  this  again — that  if  love  for  his  native 
land  ever  burned  pure  and  bright  in  the  heart  of  man,  it  burns 
in  thy  heart.  Cardinal  Cullen,  this  night.  He  selected  a  man 
who  he  knew  would  do  honor  to  the  land  of  his  birth,  and 
would  fitly  represent,  amongst  the  Cardinals  of  Rome  and  the 
representative  princes  of  the  Church,  the  land  which  once  bore 
the  title  of  the  "  Island  of  Scholars,  as  well  as  of  Saints."  I 
have  studied  the  character  of  the  eminent  personage  of  whom  I 
speak,  and  I  have  failed  to  decide,  in  my  own  mind,  from  a  mi- 
nute, familiar  examination  of  him — I  have  never  been  able  to 
decide  which  was  the  greater — the  vastness  of  his  ecclesiasti- 
cal knowledge  or  the  humility  of  his  pure  heart  and  spirit. 
Honors  have  been  worthily  showered  upon  him ;  he  has  borne 
them  with  a  humility  corresponding  with  the  greatness  to  which 
God  has  lifted  him  up.  In  the  last  Council  of  Rome  it  was  the 
honor  and  glory  of  Ireland,  that  our  Cardinal  stood  forth  ac- 
knowledged one  of  the  greatest  theologians  ;  one  of  the  first  and 
wisest  men  ;  one  of  the  deepest  thinkers  ;  one  of  the  coolest  and 
best  heads  in  the  eight  hundred  of  the  cream  of  the  Church's 
intellect  and  heart,  that  were  called  and  gathered  there  in  the 
universal  episcopacy. 

For  all  this  I  thank  him,  I  honor  the  aged  man  who  so 
worthily  fills  the  highest  throne  of  earth  ;  I  honor  him  more  than 
if  I  saw  him  crowned  with  the  thrice  resplendent  tiara  of  hu- 
manity— praise,  human  glory,  and  human  power.  Oh  !  I  honor 
him  in  his  old  age.  For,  even  as  Peter  was  imprisoned  in  Rome, 
so  Pius  IX.  is  imprisoned  to-day  in  Rome,  and  the  crown  of 
empire  has  fallen  from  his  head ;  but  the  crown  of  thorns  is  sur- 
mounted by  the  higher  crown  of  spiritual  dominion  which  God 
put  upon  the  head  of  Peter,  and  which  no  man  can  ever  pluck 


Pontificate  of  Pius  IX.  159 

from  the  brows  of  Peter's  successors.  I  follow  him.  I  go  back 
with  joy  to  the  past,  when  the  occasion  was  given  to  me  of  be- 
holding him  and  receiving  his  benediction — when  his  fatherly- 
smile  was  bestowed  on  the  Irish  friar — I  follow  him  in  the  halls 
of  my  memory  of  the  past,  I  have  seen  him  in  glory ;  I  have 
seen  him  in  sorrow ;  but  I  hallow  him  with  a  louder  voice  as  I 
behold  him,  in  the  light  of  that  future  which  my  faith  reveals  to 
me,  coming  forth  from  out  his  prison-house  to  ascend  his  throne 
once  more,  crowned  with  the  honor  and  glory  of  which  the 
world  cannot  longer  deprive  him ;  coming  forth,  the  representa- 
tive of  eternal  power  as  well  as  of  eternal  justice,  to  wield  again 
in  undisputed  sway  the  peaceful  sceptre  of  God's  designs  in 
the  nations,  and  with  an  acknowledged  royal  hand  to  point 
out  to  all  the  people  of  a  united  world  the  path  to  freedom  here 
and  glory  in  the  world  to  come. 


THE   EVILS   OF   IRELAND   AND 
THEIR   REMEDY. 


[Lecture  delivered  in  the  Music  Hall,  Harlem,  in  aid  of  St.  Jerome's  Church, 
N.  Y.,  on  October  14th,  1872.  In  consequence  of  an  unavoidable  postponement,  the 
lecture  was  not  a  success  numerically.] 

ADIES  AND  Gentlemen  :  I  understand  that  a  gentle- 
man was  to  have  introduced  me  this  evening.  He 
has  not  arrived;  but  I  beheve,  at  this  time  of  day,  I 
scarcely  require  an  introduction  to  my  kind  friends  in 
New  York.  Indeed,  introducing  me  to  you  now,  reminds  me 
of  a  little  scene  which  occurred  in  my  native  town  of  Galway. 
There  was  a  young  lady  there — only  forty-five  years  of  age. 
She  was  to  be  introduced  to  a  gentleman  ;  and,  when  she  was 
brought  over  to  him,  the  man  of  the  house  said :  "  Sir,  will  you 
allow  me  to  introduce  Miss  So-and-so."  "  How  do  you,  mad- 
am," said  the  gentleman;  "but,  indeed,  I  was  introduced  to 
you  five-and  twenty  years  ago." 

Now,  my  friends,  the  audience  this  evening  is  a  little  slim. 
Accustomed  as  I  am,  since  I  came  to  America,  to  see  great 
halls  thronged — and  accustomed  as  I  may  be  to  crowded  audi- 
ences, perhaps  you  may  think  I  was  a  little  discouraged  at  find- 
ing so  few  of  my  friends  here.  You  will  be  surprised  to  know 
that  I  was  not.  I  will  tell  you  why.  The  lecture  this  evening 
is  on  "The  Evils  of  Ireland."  No  doubt,  so  long  as  I  was  lec- 
turing on  the  glories  of  Ireland — on  the  grandeur  and  happi- 
ness of  Ireland — I  had  crowded  audiences ;  but  when  I  turned 
around,  shifted  my  sails,  and  announced  that  I  was  to  lecture 
upon  the  drawbacks — upon  the  evils  of  Ireland,  I  am  not  sur- 
prised if  I  find  so  few  Irishmen  willing  to  hear  me.  Indeed,  I 
am  as  unwilling  to  approach  the  subject  as  you  are  to  listen  to 


The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Remedy.  i6i 

me  ;  for  it  is  not  in  my  nature,  as  an  Irishman,  and  as  a  Catho- 
lic priest,  to  be  eloquent  on  the  evils  of  Ireland.  That  theme 
is  too  sad — too  full  of  bitter  tears — for  any  eloquent  remarks. 
And  the  man  who  loves  Ireland  and  the  Irish  people,  as  I  do, 
cannot  enter  heartily  upon  such  a  theme  as  this ;  for  the  subject 
itself  is  distasteful.  Yet,  I  would  not  be  a  true  Irishman,  nor  a 
true  lover  of  my  people,  if  I  were  always  to  speak  words  of  pane- 
gyric— always  to  be  praising,  always  crying  up  to  the  skies  the 
ancient  glory  and  magnificent  traditions  of  my  race,  and  of  my 
people — and  to  shut  my  eyes  completely  to  the  faults  and  evils 
of  the  Irish  and  Ireland.  If  you  have  a  friend  who  only  sees 
your  virtues,  and  refuses  to  look  at  your  defects,  you  will  con- 
sider him  of  little  or  no  account.  The  best  friend  that  a  man 
has,  is  the  man  who  will  not  be  so  blinded  by  his  love  as  not  to 
perceive  the  defects  in  his  character,  and  who  will  not  be  so 
struck  dumb  by  his  affections,  as  to  be  afraid  or  ashamed  to  tell 
him  of  these  defects. 

It  is  not  all  sunshine  in  our  Irish  character.  There  has  been, 
alas  !  little  sunshine  in  our  history — far  more  of  shadow  than  of 
light.  And  when  we  come  to  analyze  the  history  of  our  race,, 
and  to  account  for  the  evils  that  have  fallen  upon  Irelandj  we 
are  obliged  to  acknowledge  that  many  of  them — and  some  of 
the  greatest — have  come  to  us  through  our  own  faults.  There 
is  no  better  study  for  the  Irishman  of  to-day,  than  to  look  back 
upon  the  history  of  his  nation  in  the  past ;  to  try  and  trace  the 
misfortunes  of  Ireland  to  their  true  cause,  in  order  that  he  may, 
by  removing  these  causes,  brighten  his  own  pathway  of  life,  and 
the  pathway  of  his  people  in  the  future. 

Now,  there  are  three  evils  which  have  followed  the  path  of 
the  Irish  race  in  times  past,  and  unfortunately  cling  to  us  to-day; 
and  of  the  three  of  which  I  proposed  to  myself  to  speak,  I  will 
only  speak  of  two.  I  will  tell  you  why.  A  certain  painter  was 
once  painting  a  magnificent  picture  ;  and,  although  he  had  been 
all  his  life  mixing  colors,  he  had  a  special  abomination  for  one 
color  among  all  others — that  of  blue  ;  consequently  it  came  to 
pass  that  his  pictures  were  deficient  in  blue.  He  suffered  so 
much  in  using  that  color  that  he  shrank  from  it,  and  put  no 
blue  in  his  pictures.  When  I  came  to  consider  this  lecture  this 
evening,  which  I  was  about  to  give  you,  I  shrank  away  from 
the  evils  of  my  country,  just  as  the  painter  shrank  away  from 

II 


1 62  The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Remedy. 

his  color.  I  could  not  speak  to  you  as  I  had  a  right  to  speak 
to  you  of  these  three  evils;  I  only  selected  two.  In  mercy  to 
myself,  I  put  away  the  other  ;  and  the  two  great  evils  of  Ire- 
land in  the  past,  and  the  evils  of  her  people  in  the  present  day, 
I  hold  to  be,  first,  the  evil  of  disunion,  and  secondly,  that  of 
intemperance. 

There  is  amongst  us,  at  this  moment,  in  New  York,  a  most 
learned  and  most  distinguished  English  historian.  He  came 
over  to  this  land  a  few  days  ago.  He  has  come  to  lecture, 
amongst  other  subjects,  upon  Ireland  and  her  people.  He  is 
an  Englishman,  who  has  lived  for  some  years  in  Ireland ;  and 
I  believe  that,  like  every  Englishman  whom  I've  met,  who 
lived  in  Ireland,  he  has  learned  to  love  the  land,  and  to  love 
our  people.  For  I  never  yet  heard  of,  nor  knew,  an  English- 
man that  came  to  Ireland,  and  lived  among  her  people,  who  did 
not  learn  to  love  them,  and  to  love  the  land.  So  it  has  passed 
into  a  proverb  that  these  English  were  "  more  Irish  than  the 
Irish  themselves."  My  friends,  this  is  easily  accounted  for. 
Our  Ireland — our  native  land — is  by  no  means  the  wealthiest 
of  the  world's  nations,  nor  the  most  powerful.  Nay,  more  ; 
there  are  other  nations  that  far  surpass  Ireland  in  the  magnifi- 
cence of  their  scenery.  There  are  other  nations  that  far  sur- 
pass Ireland  in  pastoral  beauty.  Any  man  leaving  Ireland  and 
traveling  through  England,  must  see  that,  from  the  care  and 
♦cultivation  of  centuries,  England  has  become  like  a  well-tilled 
and  well-kept  garden,  compared  with  poor,  unhappy  Ireland. 
Sut,  in  that  ancient  Island  of  Saints,  there  is  a  certain  sweet- 
;ness  in  the  air,  there  is  a  certain  modesty  and  purity  among  the 
-people  ;  there  is  an  expansion  of  the  heart,  a  wholesomeness, 
and  innocent  good-nature  ;  there  is  a  brightness  of  intellect, 
and  sweetness  of  expression,  that  charms  the  foreigner  who 
comes  among  us;  until,  at  length,  he  loves  to  live  in  that  land, 
though  far  more  cultivated,  perhaps,  is  the  land  that  owned  him. 
Hence  it  is,  that  strangers  coming  into  Ireland  are  captivated  by 
the  land  and  by  the  people,  until  they  become  "more  Irish 
than  the  Irish  themselves."  Have  you  ever  breathed  the  pure, 
genial  air  of  Ireland,  the  very  breath  of  which  kills  every  poison- 
.ous  and  venomous  thing?  Other  nations  may  be  grander, 
other  nations  may  be  more  magnificent,  more  beautiful  in  their 
•ecenery ;  but,  in  no  country  on  the  face  of  the  earth,  is  the  air 


The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Remedy,  163 

so  pure,  or  the  grass  so  sweet,  that  no  poisonous  thing  can 
breathe  that  air,  or  eat  that  grass  without  perishing.  And  this 
English  historian,  coming  amongst  us  to  lecture  on  Ireland — 
if  we  are  to  believe  the  newspapers  of  Saturday  last — made, 
among  others,  one  most  solemn  declaration.  "  I  have,"  said 
he,  "  lived  in  Ireland.  With  an  observing  eye  I  have  watched 
her  people.  I  have  studied  the  history  of  that  land,  and  of  that 
people ;  and  I  solemnly  declare  that  whatever  evils  have  come 
upon  Ireland,  have  come  to  her  through  the  disunion  of  her 
people.  If  the  Irish  people  were  united  in  times  past,  they 
might  have  preserved  the  treasure  of  their  national  freedom 
and  existence  ;  and  if  they  were  united  to-day,  they  might  lay 
down  the  law  for  the  nation  that  oppresses  them."  Out  of  the 
mouth  of  the  stranger  I  take  the  Irish  gospel  of  independence 
that  I  preach  here  to-night.  Out  of  the  mouth  of  one  who 
ought  to  be  the  traditional  enemy  of  Ireland,  I  take  the  words 
proclaiming — as  an  Irishman  and  as  a  priest,  speaking  to  my 
fellow-Irishmen — that  disunion  has  been,  in  times  past,  as  it  is 
to-day,  the  first  curse  of  Ireland — the  first  great  evil  of  our  race 
and  of  our  people. 

Reflect,  my  friends  :  "  Union,"  says  the  proverb,  "  is  strength." 
Unity  is  strength.  There  is  far  more  in  that  word  than  people 
imagine.  We  repeat  the  proverb,  but  we  do  not  reflect  on  its 
deep,  hidden  meaning.  God — the  Eternal  Creator  of  heaven 
and  earth,  the  Supreme  and  Infinite  Being — is  Omnipotence 
itself,  because  He  is  essential  unity.  Why  is  God  omnipotent  ? 
Because,  being  one,  essentially  one,  in  the  unity  of  His  divine 
nature,  in  the  unity  of  every  attribute  that  goes  to  make  that 
nature,  if  you  will — humanly  speaking — He  admits  no  equal. 
No  power  can  contradict  Him  ;  no  voice  can  be  raised  against 
His ;  no  hand  can  be  uplifted  against  His  ;  He  reigns  supreme, 
omnipotent,  because  He  is  one.  Picture  to  yourselves,  my 
friends,  the  ancient  mythology  of  the  Greeks  and  Romans. 
They  were  idolaters,  and  admitted  a  multiplicity  of  gods — one 
contradicting  the  other.  The  attribute  of  omnipotence  was 
the  attribute  of  none.  The  ancient  pagans  did  not  conceive, 
they  had  no  idea  of,  a  God,  an  Omnipotent  Being.  Take  the 
noblest  pagan  writer  of  antiquity,  and  of  ancient  mythology — 
the  poet  Homer ;  what  does  this  great  Greek  poet  tell  us  of 
the  result  of  siege  and  war  ?     He  tell  us  how  all  the  gods  were 


164  The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Remedy. 

engaged  in  the  great  controversies  of  all  nations  ;  some  were  on 
one  side,  some  on  the  other.  He  tells  of  Mars,  the  god  of  war, 
entering  on  the  plains  of  battle ;  how  Venus,  the  goddess  of 
love,  descended  at  the  commencement  of  the  battle,  and  a 
Greek  hero  wounded  her,  and  she  fled,  shrieking,  from  the 
field.  The  idea  of  supremacy,  of  omnipotence,  and  power — 
which  God  alone  possesses — never  entered  into  the  Greek  or 
Roman  mind.  They  knew  nothing  of  this  attribute  of  the  di- 
vinity. And  why  ?  Because  they  admitted  a  multiplicity  of 
gods  and  of  goddesses,  instead  of  the  unity  of  God. 

Now,  next  to  God,  the  very  highest  example  of  unity  is  the 
Catholic  Church.  The  Son  of  God  came  down  from  heaven. 
He  became  man.  He  founded  a  Church  upon  this  earth.  He 
declared  that  Church  was  never  to  err  in  doctrine — never  to 
teach  or  utter  a  lie ;  that  she  was  never  to  be  separated  into 
various  sects.  His  last  words  upon  this  earth  were  a  prayer  for 
His  Church  before  He  suffered  and  died.  "  Father  in  heaven, 
to  Thee  I  pray,  that  those  whom  Thou  gavest  Me  may  be  one, 
even  as  Thou  and  I  are  one."  Unity  of  the  Church  was  the 
first  idea  in  the  mind  of  Christ,  who  founded  it.  He  was  God; 
and  unity  for  His  Church  was  the  last  prayer  that  was  put  up 
from  the  lips  of  Him  who  was  to  die  on  the  following  day. 
Accordingly,  because  He  founded  that  Church,  she  is  one ;  be- 
cause He  remained  with  that  Church,  she  is  one.  She  has  been 
one  for  eighteen  hundred  years ;  she  is  one  to-day ;  and  she 
shall  be  until  the  end  of  time  the  very  representative  of  the 
unity  of  God.  What  follows  from  this  wonderful  unity  of  the 
Catholic  Church — this  perfect  union  ?  There  are  over  two 
hundred  millions  of  Catholics  ;  men  of  various  nationalities  ; 
men  of  all  ages  ;  men  most  learned  ;  men  most  ignorant ;  gentle 
and  simple,  young  and  old,  the  priest  and  the  layman.  But, 
although  there  are  over  two  hundred  millions — every  one  having 
his  own  distinct  character,  and  his  own  individuality — yet,  when 
it  is  a  question  of  Catholic  faith,  these  two  hundred  millions 
have  only  one  mind  concerning  the  one  thought,  and  with  one 
tongue  making  one  sublime  act  of  divine  faith.  For  the  pre- 
servation of  that  unity,  the  Catholic  Church  has  been  obliged 
to  cut  off  branch  after  branch.  Any  man  that  ever  yet  declared 
that  he  had  doubts  of  it  was  cut  off  and  excommunicated.  He 
may  be  the  greatest  bishop;    she  cuts  him  off  like  a  simple 


1 


The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Remedy.  165 

layman — like  a  Frenchman,  the  other  day,  one  of  the  greatest 
preachers,  and  one  of  the  most  learned  men — he  raised  his  voice 
in  denial  of  the  Church's  doctrine,  and  the  Church  declared  him 
anathema;  cut  him  off  and  cast  him  out  into  the  outer  world, 
there  to  wither  until  he  is  dry  enough  to  feed  the  flames  of  hell ! 
It  may  be  a  powerful  king,  like  Henry  VIII.  of  England, 
infringing  upon  the  unity  of  the  Catholic  Church,  carrying  a 
strong  nation  at  his  back.  But,  king  or  nation,  it  is  all  alike ; 
the  Church  must  cut  them  off;  for  everything  must  be  sacrificed 
to  prove  the  unity  of  the  Church  and  the  Church's  government. 
What  follows  from  this  ?  The  strength  is  in  her.  No  power 
on  earth  or  in  hell  has  been  able  to  break  her  unity  or  her 
strength.  She  has  her  laity,  taught  by  the  clergy ;  she  has  her 
priests,  subject  to  her  bishops ;  she  has  her  bishops,  subject  to 
her  archbishops,  who  are  subject  to  the  head,  the  Pope  ;  and 
the  Pope  subject  to  Christ  ;  so  that  all  things  in  the  Catholic 
Church  go  up  to  one  ineffable  unity,  and  that  one  is  the  one 
who  sits  upon  the  Father's  right  hand  in  heaven — the  Man-God, 
Christ  Jesus.  For  eighteen  hundred  and  seventy  years  the 
world  has  made  war  upon  that  Church — upon  that  Church 
which  has  never  yet  been  able  to  strike  one  efficient  blow,  with 
the  arm  of  the  flesh,  in  her  own  defense  :  upon  that  Church 
that  stands  alone  before  them,  unarmed,  in  the  presence  of  the 
most  powerful  princes,  unable  to  resist.  Upon  that  Church 
alone,  the  blows  of  a  wicked  world  have  rained,  like  a  hail- 
storm, for  eighteen  hundred  years  and  more.  Which  of  the 
combatants  has  ever  come  forth  the  victor  ?  Who  has  ever 
been  able,  in  the  long  run,  to  put  her  foot  on  the  neck  of  her 
enemy,  but  the  Catholic  Church  ?  The  Roman  Empire,  at  a 
time  when  it  governed  the  whole  world,  gathered  up  all  its 
power,  and  concentrated  all  its  energy  to  destroy  the  Cath- 
olic Church.  For  three  hundred  years,  the  blood  of  her 
children  flowed  like  water.  And  yet,  at  the  end  of  three 
hundred  years,  the  Roman  Empire  was  broken  down,  and 
the  Church  of  God  was  triumphant. 

Three  hundred  years  ago,  England,  Germany,  and  a  great 
part  of  France,  Sweden,  Norway,  and  Russia, — in  short,  the 
greater  part  of  Europe, — separating  from  the  Church,  turned 
upon  lier  with  brutal  violence.  A  fierce  issue  stood  before  them 
for  three  hundred  years  ;  and,  at  the  end  of  that  time,  Catholici- 


1 66  The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Remedy. 

tyhad  triumphed  over  Protestantism.  For  three  hundred  years, 
a  nation  the  most  powerful  on  the  face  of  the  earth — England — 
had  concentrated  all  her  rage,  all  her  stubborn,  dogged,  Saxon 
determination,  all  the  power  and  weight  of  her  arm,  to  deprive 
Ireland  of  her  Catholicity ;  and,  in  our  own  day,  at  the  end  of  three 
hundred  years.  Catholic  Ireland  has  triumphed  ;  the  Queen  of 
England  was  obliged  to  sign  an  Act  of  the  British  Parliament 
that  declared  that  the  Protestant  Church  was  not,  nor  never 
could  be,  the  Church  of  the  Irish  people. 

Whence  comes  this  strength  that  no  power  can  destroy  ?  It 
comes  from  the  power  of  Him  who  prayed  that  His  Church 
might  be  one,  to  represent  the  unity  of  nature  which  bound  Him 
to  His  Father  unto  the  end  of  time. 

I  could  multiply  instances,  my  friends,  to  show  you  that  unity 
is  the  source  and  secret  of  strength.  But  it  is  quite  sufficient 
to  show  this  great  truth  as  instanced  by  the  omnipotence  of  one 
God,  and  by  the  ever-recurring  triumphs  of  the  one  religion, 
which  the  Son  of  God  founded.  Let  us  apply  this  to  Ireland. 
Looking  back  upon  the  history  of  our  race,  we  find  it  is  a  strange 
history,  made  up  of  triumphs  and  defeats,  of  joy  and  of  sorrow,  of 
sunshine  and  of  shadow.  But  I  invariably  find,  that  wherevet 
the  Irish  people,  in  their  past  history,  triumphed,  that  triumph 
came  out  of  their  union;  and,  when  they  were  defeated,  it  was 
from  no  defect  of  bravery  or  of  valor,  or  of  the  justice  of  their 
cause,  or  lack  of  determination ;  but  it  was  the  result  of  that 
first  curse  of  division.  I  find  that,  wherever  the  sun  shone  upon 
Ireland,  it  shone  upon  a  united  people  ;  and  when  the  hour  of 
shadow  came,  and  when  the  cloud  threw  a  saddening  gloom 
over  them — that  shadow  came  and  that  cloud  arose  from  out 
the  disunion  of  my  nation.  Look  at  the  history  of  Ireland,  for 
the  past  ten  centuries,  and  what  do  we  find.  It  is  marked  by 
three  epochs,  divided  into  three  great  periods.  Two  of  these 
were  periods  of  triumph,  and  one  a  period  of  national  defeat 
and  humiliation.  The  first  great  period  is  that  of  the  Danish 
invasion.  The  Danes  came  to  Ireland  in  the  eighth  century, 
and  remained  there  until  the  close  of  the  eleventh — that  is  to 
say,  three  hundred  years.  The  next  period  was  the  four  hun- 
dred years  that  followed  the  Anglo-Norman  invasion.  The  next 
great  period  was  the  three  hundred  years  that  followed  the  so- 
called  Reformation.     In  all  these,  our  nation  and  our  race  were 


The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Remedy.  167 

called  upon  to  defend  or  to  give  up,  to  fight  or  die  for,  great 
principles.  I  say  this — and  I  say  it  in  the  face  of  every  man 
that  ever  yet  read  or  wrote  a  page  of  history — there  never  was 
a  great  question  and  a  great  principle,  or  a  just  cause,  put  be- 
fore the  Irish  race,  which  that  people  were  not  prepared  to  do 
battle  for,  and,  in  its  defense,  to  suffer  and  to  die.  We  may 
read  of  other  peoples  abandoning  their  standard — leaving  it  on 
the  blood-stained  battlefield  ;  but  the  Irish  never  did  so.  We 
may  read  of  other  peoples  turning  their  backs,  discouraged,  on 
the  evening  of  defeat ;  but  the  Irish  never  did  so.  We  may  read 
of  other  nations  and  peoples  going  to  war  and  invading  their 
neighbors'  rights  and  liberties,  and  robbing  them  of  their' sacred 
heritage  of  freedom  ;  but  the  Irish  never  did  so.  We  may  read 
of  other  peoples  despairing  upon  the  evening  of  a  lost  battle ; 
but  the  Irish  race  have  never  known  how  to  despair,  so  long  as 
the  cause  was  just,  so  long  as  they  could  believe  they  were  up- 
held by  the  high  God  in  Heaven. 

The  first  great  epoch  in  our  national  history  was  the  invasion 
of  the  Danes.  They  came  and  swept  the  North  Sea  in  their 
long  war-galleys  ;  and  they  landed  upon  our  shores,  to  the  sound 
of  their  "  sagas  " — the  historic  songs  of  that  ancient  and  historic 
race  of  Scandinavia,  the  oldest  and  most  powerful  people  then 
known  on  the  face  of  the  earth.  Clad  in  armor,  of  gigantic 
stature,  these  blue-eyed,  fair-haired,  lion-hearted,  fearless  war- 
riors of  the  North  invaded  England,  Norway,  France,  and 
Ireland  at  nearly  the  self-same  time.  They  swept  along  the 
north  coast  of  France.  In  the  prows  of  their  ancient  galleys 
sat  their  scalds  ;  and  they  swept  down  upon  the  northern  coast 
of  England  and  around  that  island  of  the  Saxons ;  and  wher- 
ever they  passed,  the  bravest  who  measured  swords  with  them 
sheathed  their  weapons  and  became  their  tributaries  and 
serfs.  They  landed  in  Ireland ;  and,  for  the  three  hundred 
years  that  elapsed  from  the  day  the  first  Dane  set  his  foot  upon 
Irish  soil,  until  the  last  Dane  was  driven  into  the  sea,  they 
never  were  allowed  to  take  permanent  footing  in  Ireland,  or 
proclaim  their  supremacy  over  her  ancient  Celtic  race.  No  ; 
the  Celts  met  them  ;  and,  inch  by  inch,  and  foot  by  foot,  they 
disputed  every  inch  of  Irish  soil  with  them.  There  is  no  hill- 
side in  Ireland  whose  soil  has  not  been  moistened  with  Danish 
blood.     They  found  a  nation  united,  in  a  great  measure;  for 


ib8  The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Kennedy. 

the  Irish  kings  and  chieftains  (sons  of  the  Gaul  and  of  the  Celt) 
were  proud  of  all  that  they  owned,  and  proud  of  the  gallant 
people  around  them — proud  of  the  priesthood  of  Ireland,  for 
whom  they  stood  in  defense  ;  and  of  their  people,  and  of  Ire- 
land as  a  nation.  How  they  fought  we  know  well.  The  fight 
continued  for  three  hundred  years  ;  until,  at  length,  upon  the 
morning  of  Clontarf,  an  Irish  king  rode  along  the  ranks  of 
his  Irish  army,  holding,  in  his  venerable  warrior  hands,  not 
the  drawn  sword,  but  the  image  of  Jesus  Christ  crucified.  He 
harangued  his  Irish  troops.  He  told  them  the  cause  for  which 
they  were  to  fight  was  the  cause  of  the  God  who  redeemed 
them.  He  spoke  of  their  sanctified  altars.  He  lifted  every 
Irish  heart,  and  strengthened  every  Irish  arm.  So  throbbed  their 
hearts  at  the  harangue  of  that  Irish  King,  that,  before  the  even- 
ing sun  had  set,  they  had  swept  the  Danes  into  the  sea.  The 
Irish  rallied,  and,  like  the  apostle  shaking  the  serpent  from  him, 
Ireland  shook  the  invader  from  her  bosom,  and  freed  herself 
from  the  contamination  of  his  presence. 

But,  you  will  ask  me,  why  did  the  contest  last  so  long?  Why 
was  the  glorious  day  of  Clontarf  postponed  for  three  hundred 
years  ?  Why — if  this  people  were  united — why  did  they  not 
move  to  victory,  with  the  sword,  on  the  first  day,  and  not  on  the 
last?  I  answer,  it  was  because  the  evil  of  disunion,  even  at 
that  early  date,  was  upon  them.  We  have  the  sad  facts  of  his- 
tory to  tell  us  that,  wherever  the  Danes  fought,  in  the  glens  and 
on  the  hills  of  our  land,  side  by  side  with  the  Dane  was  the  ren- 
egade Irishman,  fighting  against  his  own  people,  shedding  the 
blood  of  his  own  race.  Even  on  the  morning  of  Clontarf— even 
when  the  heroic  King  Brian  rode  out,  after  reviewing  his  own 
army,  passing  like  a  fearless,  lion-hearted  warrior  right  into  the 
midst  of  the  enemy  to  reconnoitre  them,  what  a  sight  met  his 
eyes  !  There,  amid  the  serried  ranks  of  the  Danes  ;  there,  amid 
the  warriors  of  the  northern  pagans,  he  found  the  children  of  his 
own  people  :  McMurrogh  of  Wicklow,  the  thrice  accursed  race 
— accursed  of  God,  accursed  of  the  Church,  and  accursed  of  the 
genius  of  Irish  history — McMurrogh  of  Wicklow,  who  brought 
down  their  Irish  adherents  and  soldiers  to  fight  side  by  side 
with  the  Dane  upon  that  day  of  Clontarf.  The  curse  of  disunion 
was  upon  us;  but  the  demon  of  disunion  had  not  yet  eaten 
into  the  heart  of  Ireland.     The  hell-born  demon,  that  would 


The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Remedy.  169 

ruin  and  break  the  idea  of  unity  in  heaven  and  on  earth,  had 
not  yet  paralyzed  the  arm  of  Ireland.  She  was  a  nation,  and 
in  a  great  measure  was  united,  and  more  united  then  than  in  any 
other  period  of  the  history  of  the  Irish  race. 

Sixty  years  after  the  last  Dane  had  been  driven  from  Ireland — 
when  Ireland  achieved  a  victory  greater  than  ever  could  be 
achieved  in  later  years — sixty  years  later,  the  English  and 
Saxon  invader  came  upon  our  soil.  The  English  landed  in 
Ireland  more  than  seven  hundred  years  ago.  They  brought 
with  them  ruin  and  distraction  to  the  green  isle,  and  declared 
war  against  that  which,  next  to  his  faith  and  his  God,  should 
be  the  dearest  inheritance  of  every  honest  man — they  declared 
war  against  the  nationality  and  freedom  of  Ireland.  They  lifted 
up  the  standard  of  invasion ;  and  the  red  flag  of  England 
floated  over  the  green  hills.  They  declared  that  the  Irish 
Oriflame  was  no  longer  to  wave  over  the  hills  and  vales  of  the 
land  ;  and  that  Ireland  was  destined  to  be  an  enslaved  province 
instead  of  an  independent  nation.  This,  beyond  all  cavil  and 
all  doubt,  was  the  precise  condition  of  England's  invading  Ire- 
land. Here  I  say,  next  to  his  religion,  a  man  should  love  his 
nationality  ;  next  to  our  God,  we  should  love  the  country  of 
our  sires.  There  is  nothing  more  noble,  no  thought  more  sub- 
lime, that  can  enter  the  mind  of  man,  or  into  his  heart — after 
the  love  of  the  God  who  made  him,  and  of  the  faith  which  that 
God  has  revealed  to  him — there  is  nothing  more  noble  than  the 
true  and  self-sacrificing  love  that  a  man  should  have  for  his 
country.  Her  love  should  be  ever  before  him  ;  and  the  love  of 
her  people  should  be  the  rule  of  his  public,  and,  as  far  as  may 
be,  of  his  private  life.  Her  history — to  the  true  lover  of  his 
native  land — is  the  record  of  his  own  blood  ;  and,  if  there  be 
anything  noble  in  him,  anything  manly  in  him,  or  anything 
worth  living  for  in  this  world  to  him,  it  is  the  record  or  the 
history  of  the  race  from  which  he  came.  The  man  who,  from 
selfish  motives,  or  mere  egotism — mere  self-love — renounces 
that  history,  turns  his  back  upon  his  people,  and  tries  to  forget 
the  people  that  went  before  him,  is  a  traitor  to  his  native 
country;  and,  in  all  probability,  he  will  be  found  to  be  a  traitor 
to  his  God.  If  you  meet  him,  avoid  him  ;  trust  him  not.  The 
man  who  forgets  or  betrays  his  country  to-day,  will  forget  and 
betray  his  God  and  his  faith  to-morrow.     Trust  him  not.     If 


170  The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Remedy. 

you  trust  him  upon  his  word,  you  are  trusting  in  the  word  of  a 
perjurer  and  a  liar  before  high  heaven.  Give  him  not  your 
friendship,  for  he  will  betray  it.  No ;  nothing  can  be  more 
base  than  the  man  who  denies  his  God ;  and  next  to  him  is 
the  man  who  denies  and  forgets  his  country. 

Well,  my  friends,  the  Norman  and  Saxon  came.  And  now 
the  appeal  was  made  to  Ireland  to  unite  on  the  question  of  her 
nationality.  The  appeal  was  made  by  a  saint — the  last  canon- 
ized saint  of  Ireland — the  great  and  glorious  St.  Laurence 
O'Toole,  who  was  then  the  Archbishop  of  Dublin.  He  stood 
before  the  chieftains  and  kings  of  Ireland,  and  said :  "  If  you 
value  your  land — your  mother-land — if  you  value  your  freedom, 
if  you  value  your  laws,  if  you  value  the  traditions  of  your  race, 
if  you  value  a  foot  of  the  land  that  you  are  to  leave  behind  you 
to  your  children,  arise  !  Arm  !  The  invader  is  upon  your  soil. 
Arise,  and,  like  one  man,  strike  a  blow  for  Ireland  !  "  Did  the 
nation  respond  to  him  ?  Ah !  my  friends,  if  I  were  a  mere 
fulsome  flatterer  of  the  Irish  people,  I  might  say  it  did.  If  I 
were  not  an  Irishman  whose  love  for  his  native  land  is  as  hot  as 
the  blood  that  seethes  in  his  veins,  I  might  say  the  nation  did. 
But,  because  I  am  an  Irishman,  because  I  love  that  land  more 
than  I  love  all  the  rest  of  the  world  put  together,  because  I 
would  rather  have  a  grave  in  Irish  soil  than  a  king's  throne 
upon  a  foreign  shore,  I  am  bound,  in  the  truth  of  history,  to 
say  that  the  Irish  people  did  not  unite,  did  not  listen  to  the 
appeal  that  came  to  them  from  the  great  prince-archbishop  of 
Dublin  ;  and  that,  on  the  question  of  nationality  alone,  from 
that  day  to  this,  during  the  seven  hundred  years  that  have 
passed  away,  the  Irish  people  never  united.  Never !  Read 
over  carefully,  page  after  page,  the  history  of  those  seven  hun- 
dred years  of  sorrow ;  and  I  defy  you  to  point  out  a  single 
passage  or  incident  in  the  history  of  Ireland  in  which  the  nation 
was  united  on  a  national  question.  We  read,  to  be  sure,  of  a 
time  when  the  Prince  of  Ulster  arose.  But,  when  Ulster  arose, 
Munster  was  opposed  to  her.  It  was  never  otherwise.  It  is, 
indeed,  true,  that  when  Macarthy  Mor  and  the  Munster  chiefs 
arose,  there  was  no  enthusiasm  in  Connaught ;  and,  again,  when 
Roderick  O'Connor  and  the  western  Irish  princes  arose,  their 
action  was  checked  by  the  action  of  the  prince  of  Leinster. 
The  English  invader  knew  well  the  precept  given  to  a  tyrant  in 


The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Remedy.  171 

ages  gone  by:  If  you  wish  to  govern  a  people,  and  crush  them, 
divide  them,  and  keep  them  divided.  He  no  sooner  succeeded 
in  striking  a  blow  at  the  welfare  of  our  race,  than  he  found  the 
Irish  flocking  to  his  aid.  It  was  with  Irish  swords  he  stormed 
the  heroic  old  town  of  Wexford.  No  sooner  did  Henry  arrive 
in  Ireland — and  the  Irish  chieftains  attempted  to  make  one 
great  stand — than  he  saw  other  Irish  soldiers  flocking  to  his 
standard.  Dublin  and  Waterford  fell,  not  before  the  lances  of 
the  Norman  knights — although  their  lances,  in  that  day,  were 
invincible — but  before  the  swords  of  their  own  countrymen. 
Their  country's  best  blood  was  shed  by  Irish  hands.  Oh  !  sad, 
sad  and  sorrowful  is  that  history !  It  makes  the  heart  of  the 
Irish  historian,  and  the  lover  of  his  land,  break,  to  contemplate 
it.  For  four  hundred  years,  what  is  the  history  of  Ireland? 
The  merest  account  of  the  petty  intrigues  of  these  Irish  chief- 
tains— one  time  against  each  other;  another  time  quarreling 
with  their  own  soldiers  ;  another  time  making  an  isolated,  weak 
attack  upon  the  common  foe,  whilst  their  brother  chieftains 
were  attacking  themselves  in  the  rear  ;  in  fact,  there  can  scarcely 
be  anything  more  melancholy  or  harrowing  than  the  history  of 
Ireland,  from  the  day  of  the  first  landing  of  the  English  and 
Saxons,  until  the  day  when,  fortunately  for  Ireland,  the  pious 
and  chaste  Harry  the  Eighth  called  upon  us  to  renounce  our 
religion.  It  is  the  turning-point  for  Ireland.  Ireland's  history 
would  be  most  contemptible  if  the  great  issue  of  religion  had 
not  been  opened  before  the  Irish  people.  For  the  Irish  people, 
from  the  day  the  English  invaders  landed  in  Ireland  until  these 
same  English  attacked  the  religion  of  Ireland,  were  the  most 
disunited,  and,  consequently,  the  weakest  of  all  nations  upon 
the  earth.  How  strange  !  that  these  men  that  loved  Ireland, 
and  lived  and  died  for  her — whose  descendants,  to  this  day, 
even  in  foreign  lands,  though  thousands  of  miles  of  ocean  may 
roll  between  them  and  that  land  of  their  sires,  cherish  the  most 
passionate  love  for  Ireland,  as  you  do — yet  at  home  they  never 
yet  united  as  one  man  in  defense  of  that  time-honored,  green 
old  standard  of  Ireland. 

But  three  hundred  years  passed  away  ;  and  fortunately  for 
us,  and  for  the  glory  and  dignity  of  Irish  history,  another  issue 
was  put  before  the  people  ;  and  that  people — so  disunited — were 
called  upon  to    renounce  their  religion.      Perhaps   Harry  the 


172  The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Remedy. 

Eighth,  in  that  day,  said  to  himself,  "  The  Irish  will  at  once 
become  Protestants.  They  never  united  in  defense  of  nation- 
ality; and  they  will  certainly  not  unite  in  defense  of  religion." 
He  might  have  said  to  himself:  "  /did  not  love  my  religion — 
my  English  people  did  not  love  it,  and  they  gave  it  up.  Surely 
the  people  that  never  were  united  in  defense  of  nationality — a 
people  that  never  were  united  on  the  national  idea — would  easily 
give  up  the  question  of  religion."  Ah  !  he  was  deeply  mistaken. 
For  there,  in  the  core  of  the  heart  of  the  nation — throbbing  in 
the  bosom  of  every  Irishman — was  the  pure  Irish  blood,  every 
drop  of  which  is  Catholic.  Henry  attacked  the  Catholic  Church, 
the  Church  of  God;  and  that  moment  Ireland  and  the  Irish  peo- 
ple united  and  stood  together  in  grand  and  glorious  union,  as 
if  they  were  but  one  man.  I  admire  and  love  my  Protestant 
fellow-countrymen.  There  is  not  a  man  in  this  world  less  big- 
oted than  I  am.  I  admire  every  man  of  Irish  blood  and  of  Irish 
birth,  that  loves  his  native  land,  be  he  Protestant  or  Catholic. 
It  was  the  Protestants  who  led  the  glorious  movement  of  '82. 
But  still  I  say,  as  a  nation,  the  national  heart,  the  national  action, 
and  the  national  sentiment  of  Ireland,  for  fifteen  hundred  years, 
have  been  Catholic  to  the  heart's  core  and  nothing  else.  Henry 
accordingly  called  upon  a  divided  nation  to  give  up  that  relig- 
ion— to  renounce  the  Mother  of  God,  that  name  so  dear  to 
every  Irish  heart — to  renounce  their  priesthood,  who  were  not 
saints,  but  the  grandest  men  that  ever  flourished  in  the  Church 
of  God  ;  to  renounce  the  faith  that  gave  Ireland  a  claim  to  the 
great  title  she  had  received  of  "  mother  of  saints  and  of 
scholars ;  "  to  renounce  their  God  in  their  hearts,  to  renounce 
their  altars,  to  renounce  every  vestige  of  their  Catholic  re- 
ligion. He  called  upon  a  divided  nation  to  do  this.  Even  as 
the  voice  of  God  in  heaven  called  upon  His  angels  to  do  battle 
in  His  name,  and  rallied  them  around  His  standard,  until  the 
blaspheming  rebel  angels  were  driven  into  the  nether  hell — so 
the  voice  of  the  English  king,  calling  upon  the  divided  Irish 
people  to  renounce  their  faith,  rallied  them  and  united  them  as 
one  man.  Ireland  drew  the  sword — no  longer  with  a  divided 
heart ;  no  longer  with  a  wavering  purpose.  Her  children  stood 
side  by  side  with  the  determination  of  children  of  God.  Ire- 
land drew  the  sword,  stood  between  the  English  tyrant  and  her 
ancient  altar,  and  said :     "  For  this  altar — for  this  religion  we 


The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Rctnedy.  1 73 

are  prepared  to  fight  as  one  man — to  die  ;  but  that  altar  must 
be  preserved  in  the  land."  The  English  monarch  found  himself, 
in  one  moment,  confronted  by  a  united  people.  No  such  thing 
was  known  in  Ireland  since  the  day  that  Brian  Boru  had  cast 
the  Danes  into  the  sea.  A  united  Ireland  !  Oh  !  fair  and  beau- 
tiful vision  !  The  Catholic  faith  of  the  land  became  synony- 
mous among  the  Irish  with  nationality.  The  Irish  had  at  length 
found  the  "  Philosopher's  stone  ;  "  they  had  at  length  found  the 
secret  of  their  strength.  Their  strength  was  in  union ;  their 
union  was  effected  by  the  faith  that  was  in  the  nation  ;  faith  had 
united  her  as  one  man.  She  arose  in  arms  ;  she  stood  for  three 
hundred  years  ;  the  storm  of  night  had  passed  over  her  in  clouds 
of  persecution.  Its  mists  had  broken  into  a  rain  of  blood,  and 
burst  upon  her;  her  people  had  suffered  so  that  her  name  had 
gone  out  amongst  the  nations  as  the  martyred  people  of  the 
earth ;  her  people  had  stood  confiscation,  persecution,  exile, 
robbery,  and  death,  until  these  agencies  had  reduced  to  the  con- 
dition of  paupers,  in  their  own  land,  the  children  of  the  Princes 
of  the  Irish  soil. 

The  Irish  Catholics  were  robbed,  by  James  I.,  of  the  fair  prov- 
ince of  Ulster ;  and  the  English  and  Scotch  swarmed  on  the 
Irish  soil  north  of  the  Boyne.  Under  the  wretched  Cromwell, 
they  were  driven  from  their  fertile  valleys  on  the  banks  of  the 
Shannon ;  and  hundreds  and  thousands  were  driven  far  off 
towards  the  western  ocean,  there  to  famish  and  to  die  on  the 
inhospitable  hills  of  Connaught.  The  Irish  people  were  robbed 
by  William  of  Orange ;  and  a  law  was  passed  driving  their 
priests  into  exile ;  and  if  a  man  harbored  a  priest  he  was  pun- 
ished by  imprisonment  or  a  fine.  A  Catholic  man  could  not 
send  his  child  to  a  Catholic  school ;  and  if  a  Catholic  child 
became  a  Protestant,  he  disinherited  his  own  father,  and 
robbed  him  of  all  his  property.  Every  ingenious  device  that 
persecution  could  suggest  was  put  in  practice  against  our  people, 
and  we  bore  it  all ;  we  suffered  it  all ;  and  we  fought  and  died 
for  our  faith ;  for  we  were  united  ;  and  we  proved  to  the 
world  that  the  people  of  Ireland  were  invincible  in  that  union, 
by  the  magnificent  victories  which  we  have  achieved  over 
all  the  power  of  England,  which  failed  to  make  us  Protestant. 

My  friends,  is  not  this  the  truth  of  history  ?  What  do  I  de- 
duce from  this  ?     I  draw  this  conclusion :  That  the  religion — 


174  The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Remedy. 

the  Catholic  rehgion — of  the  Irish  people  is  the  one  uniting  ele- 
ment in  that  history;  the  one  glorious  secret  is  in  that  union  ; 
for  there  is  not  a  people  on  the  face  of  the  earth  so  disunited 
on  every  other  question  as  we  are.  Look  at  us  at  home.  Yo\i 
find  the  country  split  up  into  factions  at  the  present  time — 
nationalists  and  partisans  of  England.  You  find  amongst  the 
Irish  Catholics  many  lovers  of  liberty,  who  are  ready  to  die  for 
Ireland  ;  and,  as  a  contrast  to  these,  you  will  find  men  who 
think  the  greatest  curse  of  Ireland  would  be  the  curse  of  inde- 
pendence. But  the  moment  you  touch  the  question  of  re- 
ligion, that  moment,  no  matter  what  the  Irishman  is,  priest  or 
friar,  Democrat  or  Radical,  he  takes  his  stand  at  once,  and 
says :  "  No  matter  what  my  politics  are  ;  no  matter  to  you 
about  my  sobriety  or  drunkenness  ;  no  matter  to  you  about  my 
riches  or  poverty ;  no  matter  what  my  past  record  is,  here  I  am 
a  son  of  Ireland."  If  the  devil  came  to  me  to-night,  and  said — 
"  Father  Tom,  I  am  the  devil,  and  I  want  to  go  amongst 
your  countrymen  in  America ;  and  I  will  quarrel  with  the 
politics  of  every  man  that  I  meet.  If  I  meet  a  Democrat,  I'll 
be  a  Radical ;  if  I  meet  a  Radical,  I'll  be  a  Democrat ;  and  I 
will  disagree  with  every  Irishman  that  I  meet,  and  say:  '  Up 
with  England  and  down  with  Ireland  '  " — I  would  say,  "  Go 
on  ;  you  are  safe."  "  I  will  disagree  with  them  ;  I  will  abuse 
them."  "  Well,"  I  would  say,  "  you  will  not  have  one  word 
said  to  you ;  you  are  still  safe.  But  the  moment  you  cry 
'  Down  with  the  Catholic  faith,'  and  blaspheme  the  Mother 
ot  God,  the  first  Irishman  that  you  met,  if  your  eyes  weren't 
black  enough  for  you,  he'd  blacken  them." 

Now,  my  friends,  if  you  will  ask  me  what  do  I  think  of  this 
race — its  future  at  home  and  abroad  ?  I  think  well  of  it.  I 
don't  care  what  views  any  historian,  or  any  lecturer,  or  any  other 
man  takes  ;  I  think  well  of  myself  as  one  of  that  race.  It  is  a 
bad  thing  for  a  man  or  a  people  to  think  too  little  of  themselves. 
Humility  is  a  beautiful  virtue ;  but  it  has  its  limits.  It  is  law- 
ful for  a  man  to  think  well  of  himself  and  of  his  people.  I  am 
not  skilled  in  phrenology — I  don't  know  where  the  bump  of  self- 
esteem  is  ;  but  I  know  that  a  hatter,  when  he  makes  a  hat  for 
an  Irishman,  must  always  make  room  for  that  bump.  I  think 
well  of  you — I  think  hopefully  of  the  future  of  the  people  that 
are  one  on  that  magnificent,  that  extraordinary  point — one  in  the 


The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Remedy.  175 

sacred  unity  that  binds  them  together  like  one  man  ;  for,  of  all 
the  questions  upon  which  a  people  can  unite,  the  most  power- 
ful, and  at  the  same  time  the  most  glorious,  is  the  magnificent 
question  of  their  faith  and  of  their  religion.  Here  no  political 
question  can  come  in  to  divide  them  ;  they  have  no  worldly  mo- 
tive to  support  one  man  more  than  another.  The  point  of  union 
is  not  on  earth  ;  it  is  in  heaven.  The  glorious  link  that  binds  us, 
as  a  people  and  as  a  nation,  is  in  the  hands  of  God,  upon  His 
throne  of  glory.  God,  the  founder  of  the  Catholic  Church  ; 
God,  the  author  of  our  faith;  God,  dwelling  in  His  Church; 
God  is  the  grand  point  of  union  upon  which  Irishman  meets 
Irishman ;  and  God  Himself  unites  each  to  each  as  if  he  were 
his  brother.  To  be  sure,  I  have  heard  of  the  dreams  of  some 
pure  lovers  of  Ireland.  I  don't  question  that  love  ;  but  what  I 
say  is  that  there  is  nothing  in  the  history  of  our  race  to  prove 
that  patriotism  is  the  secret  of  union.  When  we  were  fighting  the 
Danes,  it  was  not  because  the  Danes  invaded  our  nationality ; 
but  because  they  invaded  our  altars  and  our  sanctuaries.  Not, 
perhaps,  reflecting  on  the  secret  of  the  victory  we  won  over  the 
Danes,  religion  was  the  only  question  upon  which  England  was 
able  to  unite  us,  and,  consequently,  laid  herself  open  to  get  that 
famous  thrashing  that  we  gave  her  on  the  religious  question. 
Forgetting  all  this — not  remembering  this — there  are  men,  in  this 
day,  in  Ireland,  who  have  proved  their  love  for  Ireland ;  and  I 
respect  and  honor  them  for  it.  But  they  ask,  why  is  it  that  the 
Catholic  priests  and  the  Catholic  religion  are  antagonistic  to 
the  liberty  and  union  of  Ireland  ?  I  deny  it ;  I  deny  it  from 
out  my  soul ;  I  deny  it  in  the  name  of  the  men  who,  for  seven 
hundred  years,  have  been  the  foremost,  and  bravest,  and  most 
disinterested  of  Ireland's  lovers  and  patriots — her  priesthood. 
I  deny  it  in  the  name  of  Laurence  O'Toole,  who  went  down 
into  his  grave  with  a  heart  broken  with  love  for  Ireland.  I 
deny  it  in  the  name  of  Turlough  O'Brien,  who  was  slaughtered 
in  Limerick,  because  he  stood  by  his  people  to  drive  back  their 
country's  invaders.  I  deny  it  in  the  name  of  the  hoary-headed 
patriot — the  lion,  as  he  is  called — the  great  Archbishop  of  the 
West,  the  immortal  and  imperishable  John  McHale,  of  Tuam. 
I  deny  it,  in  a  word,  in  the  name  of  the  men  who  remained  in 
Ireland,  and  stood  by  Ireland's  people  when  it  was  death  to  be 
found  in  the  land  of  their  birth — the  men  who  sacrificed  every- 


I  "J^  The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Remedy. 

thing  for  Ireland.  I  deny  it  in  the  name  of  nine  hundred  and 
ninety-six  Dominican  priests  of  Irish  blood,  whom  Queen  Eliz- 
abeth slaughtered,  because  they  would  not  give  up  their  people. 
The  "  Virgin  Queen,"  as  she  is  called — God  help  us !  if  our 
ideas  of  virginity,  or  of  purity,  or  of  any  other  virtue,  were  to 
be  tried  by  the  standard  of  Queen  Elizabeth  !  She  was  a  man  ; 
she  wasn't  a  woman  at  all.  She  had  all  the  virtues  of  a  man — 
none  of  the  virtues  of  a  woman.  She  had  the  heart  of  a  lion. 
She  would  have  been  magnificent  upon  the  battle-field.  She 
had  the  mind  of  a  great  man,  and  his  soul.  She  was  one  of 
the  greatest  sovereigns  that  ever  yet  sat  upon  a  throne ;  but 
she  hadn't  one  particle  of  modesty  or  purity.  When  she  came 
to  the  throne  there  were  in  green  Ireland  a  thousand  Domin- 
ican monks — all  Irishmen,  and  of  the  best  blood  in  Ireland. 
When  she  died,  out  of  the  thousand,  she  left  only  four  behind. 
Nine  hundred  and  ninety-six  were  slaughtered !  Where  is  the 
man  that  raises  his  voice  to  the  effect  that  the  worst  enemy  of 
Ireland  is  the  priest — that  the  priesthood  in  Ireland  do  not  love 
their  country?  If  the  graves  of  Ireland  could  speak  ; — if  the 
graves  of  the  dead  that  are  lying  under  the  shamrocks  that  are 
growing  over  them,  could  speak  ; — if  the  martyr-priests  of  Ireland 
could  send  forth  that  voice  of  truth  to  rebuke  the  ignorant ;  from 
end  to  end  of  Ireland,  from  every  inch  of  Ireland's  consecrated 
soil,  would  be  heard  a  voice ;  and  that  voice  would  cry  out, 
"  Oh,  if  ever  men  loved  their  country,  the  priesthood  of  Ire- 
land loved  their  ancient  native  land."  My  friends,  believe  me, 
that  one  secret  of  our  union  is  the  union  of  our  faith;  the  one 
secret  of  union  is  that,  to-day,  the  Catholics  of  Connaught,  of 
Leinster,  of  Munster,  and  of  Ulster,  are  all  really  Catholics 
and  brothers  in  the  land.  The  Orangeman  has  no  real  sympa- 
thy with  his  Catholic  fellow-countrymen ;  they  are  separate  and 
distinct.  The  Orangeman  cries  out:  "  Here's  to  King  William, 
and  his  glorious,  pious,  and  immortal  memory ;  "  the  Catholic 
apostrophizes  him  in  a  very  different  manner.  There  was  a  fellow 
down  in  the  County  Galway,  a  poor  creature,  who  went  into  a 
public  house  where  there  was  an  Orange  Lodge.  When  one  of 
the  Orangemen  saw  him  coming  towards  them,  he  stood  up  and 
proposed  "  The  glorious  memory  of  Lord  Castlereagh."  Lord 
Castlereagh  was  the  man  that  sold  Ireland  at  the  time  of  the 
"  Union ;  "   he    was   (though    an    Irishman,   and    a   very  tal- 


The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Remedy.  \  yy 

ented  man)  the  accursed  instrument  that  England  made 
use  of  to  destroy  his  country  and  rob  the  people.  After- 
wards he  cut  his  throat.  Well,  this  poor  fellow  listened  ;  and 
when  the  Orangeman  proposed  the  toast,  and  they  all  stood  up 
and  drank  the  memory  of  Castlereagh — "  Nov/,  stop  so,"  said 
he.  "Will  you  allow  me  to  propose  my  toast?  Here  it  is: 
*  Here's  to  the  strop  that  put  a  keen  edge  on  the  razor  that  cut 
Castlereagh's  throat ! '  " 

Now,  you  have  the  whole  history  of  Ireland  in  that  little 
fact  ;  the  whole  history  of  our  race  is  there.  The  one  secret  of 
union  is  one  common  faith  and  one  common  religion.  The  one 
word  that  warms  the  heart  of  the  most  negligent  Catholic — be 
he  an  Irishman  or  an  American — is  the  word  Catholic.  If  he 
meets  a  Catholic,  his  heart  warms  to  meet  him.  If  there  be  a 
row,  and  he  sees  a  Catholic  attacked,  he  goes  over  and  takes  a 
little  corner  of  the  row  to  himself  to  defend  the  Catholic.  I 
met  a  man  once — -a  poor,  unfortunate  fellow — all  covered  with 
sticking-plaster  about  his  head.  "  What  happened  to  you  ?  " 
said  I.  "  Well,"  said  he,  "  Father  Tom,  there  were  some  fellows 
I  met  over  there,  and  one  of  them  said  something  about  the 
Blessed  Virgin,  and  I  knocked  him  down."  "  Why  didn't  you 
let  him  go,  and  say  some  kind  of  a  prayer  for  him  ?  "  "  Well,  your 
reverence,"  said  he,  "I  never  heard  anybody  say  a  word  against 
her  without  knocking  him  down.  I  couldn't  help  it — I  couldn't 
even  if  there  was  five  or  six  of  them."  And  so  they  had, 
beaten  him  into  a  jelly.  Take  away  that  one  principle  of 
union ;  let  any  man  preach  to  you  that  "  in  order  to  be  good. 
Irishmen  you  must  cease  to  be  Catholics."  If  you  listen  to  him, 
that  moment — that  moment  he  has  succeeded  in  destroying  the 
last  hope — the  last  possibility  of  ever  uniting  Irishmen  upon 
any  one  question.  As  a  lover  of  Ireland — if  I  wasn't  a  priest 
at  all — if  I  was  a  Protestant  minister  (Lord  between  us  and; 
harm !)  instead  of  being  what  I  am,  I  would  tell  you  something. 
I  would  say  to  you  :  "  I  am  not  a  Catholic ;  I  am  not  even  an 
Irishman  ;  but  I  have  read  your  history,  and  the  history  of  your 
race ;  and  I  tell  you,  in  the  day  you  lose  faith  in  the  Catholic 
Church — in  that  day  all  hope  of  ever  uniting  you  upon  any 
other  question  is  at  an  end."  But  will  that  hope  ever  be  real- 
ized ?  Oh !  most  certainly.  I  believe  as  certain  as  that  the 
glorious  union  of  all  Irishmen  is  the  greatest  and  strongest 

12 


178  The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Remedy. 

union  ;  I  have  faith  in  my  God ;  and  I  am  no  dreamer  nor  the- 
orizer ;  and  when  I  have  said  that  I  have  made  my  act  of  faith. 
I  beHeve  that  out  of  the  persecutions  that  are  coming  upon  the 
CathoHc  Church,  in  these  days,  will  rise  the  magnificent  Irish 
union  of  to-day,  which  will  defend  and  protect  the  Catholic 
Church,  which  is  attacked  by  the  most  powerful  man  on  the  face 
of  the  earth,  who  has  declared  himself  her  chief  enemy.  Now, 
Bismarck  has  declared  against  the  Jesuits  and  Christian  Broth- 
ers, especially  the  Jesuits.  He  has  bent  a  powerful  nation  ;  he 
has  crushed  old  historic,  heroic  France,  a  nation  that  had  once 
the  upper  hand  of  him.  William  of  Prussia  has,  at  his  right 
hand,  the  greatest  enemy  of  the  Church,  which  is  Russia ;  and 
on  his  left  he  has  the  second  greatest  enemy  of  the  Church, 
who  would  be  the  greatest  enemy  if  she  only  had  the  power — 
and  that  is  England.  The  other  day  some  of  the  members  of 
Parliament  and  some  of  the  Protestant  bishops  sent  a  deputa- 
tion to  Bismarck  to  tell  him  how  proud  they  were  of  him ; 
what  a  good  man  he  was  ;  how  spirited  he  was — because  he  de- 
clared war  against  the  Catholic  Church.  Now,  my  friends,  our 
German  Catholic  friends  are  our  brethren ;  all  men  are  our 
brethren,  to  be  sure ;  and  it  is  accordingly  true  that  you  must 
love  all  men  and  hate  no  man.  But,  our  German  Catholic 
brethren  are  oppressed  by  this  persecution  of  Catholics  ;  and  God 
has  given  to  the  Irish  the  singularity  to  be  the  first  Catholic 
people  on  the  face  of  God's  earth  at  this  very  hour.  If  ever 
there  was  a  time  when  this  mighty  and  sanctified  race — great 
in  its  faith  at  home  ;  great  in  its  numbers,  in  its  power,  and  in 
its  generosity  in  America  ; — if  ever  there  was  a  time  when  this 
great  and  sanctified  race  would  find  it  necessary  to  unite  on  one 
great  central  point  of  union,  that  time  is  approaching  in  the 
sad  persecution  that  is  coming  upon  the  Catholic  Church.  God, 
who  orders  all  things — 'God  alone  knows  how  much  of  glory, 
how  much  of  independence,  how  much  of  power  and  of  free- 
dom may  yet  accrue  to  old  Ireland,  out  of  the  battle  which  her 
children  have  always  fought,  and  will  fight  for  their  faith  unto 
the  end  of  time.  God  only  knows ;  it  may  be  the  beginning 
of  the  end.  Nations  that  oppressed  the  Church  always  go 
down,  and  have  gone  down,  for  ages ;  and.  in  a  few  years, 
every  man  that  is  against  her  will  have  gone  to  his  death. 
Why  ?  Because,  amongst  the  promises  which  God  has  made  to 


The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Remedy.  1 79 

His  Church,  He  said  she  must  triumph  until  the  end;  and, 
when  the  Church  triumphs,  her  friends  will  triumph  :  and  when- 
ever the  Church  f^ains  in  glory  and  in  power,  in  that  day  He 
will  give  glory  and  power  to  this  old  and  sanctified  race,  that 
has  never  known  how  to  deny  Him,  or  to  change  its  faith  from 
His  Church. 

Now,  the  second  great   evil  of  our  race  is  the  evil   of  intem- 
perance.    I  do  not  mean  to  say  that  we  Irish  are  a  peculiarly 
drunken  people.     No  !  there  are  far  greater  drunkards  than  we 
are,  my  friends.     A  Scotchman,  they  say,  will  drink  a  quart  of 
whisky  when  an  Irishman  will  be  able  only  to  drink  a  "  naggin." 
It  is  not  the  question  as  to  whether  we  are  the  greatest  drunk- 
ards on  the  face  of  the  earth ;  for  wherever  the  vice  of  intem- 
perance  is  found  amongst  our  people,  there  it  is   ruining  the 
hopes  of  Ireland.     In  the  past  we  know  its  history.     We  know 
the  old  story  that  we  all  heard  when  we  were  young,  about  the 
"  rising  "   in  Ireland — the  spasmodic   effort  of  the  poor,  down- 
trodden race  to  vindicate  themselves,  and  strike  a  blow  for  the 
land  that  bore  them.     But  the  curse  of  drink  was  upon  them. 
I  remember,  when  I  was  a  boy,  hearing,  at  my  own  home,  the 
whole  story  from  an  old  grandfather,  who  was  himself  a  strong 
man  in   "  Ninety-eight,"  and   saw  the  whole  thing  pass  before 
his   eyes ;    and    he    said    that    the    united    effort    would    have 
been  successful,  but  "the  boys"  got  drunk;  it  was  the  drink 
that    filled    the  river   Slaney   with    Irish    dead    bodies,  on  the 
day  when  they  made  their  last  stand  on  Vinegar  Hill.     It  was 
not  the  soldiers  of  England  that  conquered  those  giant  sons  of 
Wicklow  and  Wexford  ;  those  noble  and  heroic  men  would  not 
have  so  easily  yielded  that  time,  had  it  not  been  that  the  curse 
of  drink  was  upon  them.     What  do  we  find  in  all  this  ?     Time 
will  not  permit  me  to  speak  at  length  on  this  subject ;  nor  am  I 
willing  to  do  so  ;  but  so  important  a  theme   is   it  that  I  intend 
to  give  more  than  one  express  lecture  on  it. 

But  what  do  we  find  ?  Our  Irish  people  have  come 
to  America,  and  have  got  the  start  of  other  nations.  We 
were  mustering  in  thousands  and  in  hundreds  of  thousands, 
when  other  great  nations — great  in  this  land  to-day — were  only 
sending  out  their  pioneers.  Our  nation  and  our  Irish  race  came 
to  this  land  in  millions,  and  brought  with  them  their  Irish  vir- 
tues and  the  intellect  that  Almighty  God  gave  them.     The  bulk 


i8o  77^1?  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Remedy. 

of  our  people  brought  with  them  their  Irish  energy,  brought 
with  them  their  industry,  brought  with  them  their  Irish  hon- 
esty and  faith.  But  the  unfortunate  vice  of  intemperance  came 
and  spoiled  all.  I  needn't  tell  you — our  very  enemies 
acknowledge  it — that  there  is  no  people  so  bright  as  the 
Irish ;  even  the  English  themselves  acknowledge  it.  An 
English  traveler  says,  the  moment  you  meet  a  native  you  see  in 
his  face  the  brightness  and  intelligence  of  the  people ;  and  it  is 
apparent  even  in  the  little  child  that  you  meet  on  the  roadside. 
God  has  given  to  the  Irish  people  the  gift  of  intelligence ;  and 
their  flash  of  humor,  their  keen,  witty  response,  and  ready 
comprehension  of  the  most  recondite  jokes  are  everywhere  re- 
marked. It  comes  natural  to  an  Irishman.  In  an  encounter  of 
wit  he  is  able  to  turn  a  corner  on  you  ;  and  of  every  joke  you 
make  he  sees  and  meets  the  point.  Irish  intellect  and  talent ! 
Why,  the  brightest  names,  the  very  brightest  and  highest  names 
on  the  roll  of  English  philosophy  and  science  and  art  are  the 
names  of  Irishmen.  Some  two  or  three,  of  course,  we  don't 
claim.  We  are  proud  of  Edmund  Burke,  the  great  statesman, 
and  such  Irishmen  as  O'Brien,  Sheridan,  and  O'Connell ;  we  are 
proud  of  Daniel  Maclise,  the  greatest  painter  of  his  age.  But 
we  don't  lay  much  claim  on  the  Duke  of  Wellington,  as  great  a 
man  as  he  was — the  only  man  that  ever  was  able  to  match  Na- 
poleon— for  when  he  was  in  Ireland  he  was  ashamed  to  be  con- 
sidered an  Irishman ;  and  we  can  find  better  men  in  our  ranks 
any  day  in  the  year,  Irish  energy !  Look  at  the  cities  of 
America — look  at  Chicago,  which  I  saw  last  week  rising  like  a 
phoenix  from,  her  ashes — nearly  altogether  the  work  of  Irish- 
men. Look  at  the  great  railways  of  America,  spanning  the 
mighty  continent,  that  are  the  production  of  the  muscle,  of 
the  strong  arm,  and  of  the  energy  and  industry  of  the  Irish- 
man. We  brought  with  us  to  this  land  the  ineffable  blessinp;  of 
Catholic  faith,  which,  if  we  only  give  it  fair  play,  must  make  us 
all  honest  men  ;  for  I  would  not  give  a  dime  for  all  the  other 
virtues  without  that  strict  honesty  which  lies  in  the  sacraments 
of  the  Catholic  Church.  How  is  it,  then,  with  so  much  talent, 
so  much  intellect,  so  much  energy,  and  with  the  grand  faith 
that  we  brought  with  us  from  the  old  land  to  the  land  of  the 
stranger,  how  is  it  that  others  come  in  afterwards,  and  take 
possession  of  the  soil,  whilst  we  have  remained  to  be  "  hewers  of 


The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Remedy.  i8i 

wood  and  drawers  of  water?"  Is  the  curse  of  poverty  always 
to  rest  upon  the  Irishman  ?  No  !  God  never  intended  it ;  nature 
never  intended  it  ;  society  never  intended  it ;  and  glorious 
America  never  intended  it.  If  the  Irishman  is  temperate,  the 
way  to  success  is  open  to  him.  You  land  upon  the  shores  of 
this  great  and  magnificent  country,  more  than  imperial  in  her 
power,  more  than  imperial  in  her  deliverance  from  the  tyrant, 
more  than  imperial  in  the  power  of  God's  creation  and  in  her 
vast  resources.  America  opens  her  great  bosom  to  you.  Amer- 
ica, with  more  than  imperial  hand,  welcomes  you  from  far  off 
lands.  America  sends  greeting  over  the  wide  ocean,  and  says : 
"All  that  I  demand  is  intellect,  energy,  honesty,  and  industry; 
and,  one  and  all,  honor,  glory,  and  power  are  open  to  you."  In 
other  lands  a  man  may  be  born  to  a  title,  or  wealth,  or  position, 
yet  he  may  be  a  "  booby."  I  have  seen  English  lords  and  Eng- 
lish squires,  "boobies,"  "well-born,"  as  they  call  it,  in  their  na- 
tive land.  I  have  seen  an  Irish  beggarman  asking  alms  of 
them  ;  and  I  would  rather,  a  thousand  times  rather,  be  that 
beggar,  with  the  clear  Irish  eye  in  his  head,  and  his  keen  Irish 
intellect,  than  be  a  "  booby  "  lord  or  "  booby  "  squire.  Yes,  my 
friends,  a  lord  may  be  born  to  a  position  of  wealth  and  of  title 
and  yet  be  born  an  ape.  But,  in  America,  in  this  grand  country, 
there  is  no  aristocracy,  there  is  no  nobility,  save  the  nobility 
and  aristocracy  of  intellect  and  energy  and  honor  ;  and  where 
that  broad  way  to  power,  to  influence,  and  to  glory  is  open — 
where  the  only  conditions  demanded  are  intellect,  energy,  in- 
dustry, and  honor — I  will  put  my  Irish  race  in  the  ring,  and  if 
you  will  only  consent  to  be  temperate,  and  to  be  true  Catholics, 
I  will  stake  my  existence  upon  you  that  you  will  distance  every 
other  people  in  that  contest.  Therefore,  I  look  upon  this  as 
the  second  great  blot  and  great  evil  of  my  land  and  of  my 
people.  Oh,  my  friends,  think  of  it ;  there  are  eight  millions  of 
Irishmen  in  America  now — perhaps  the  number  is  not  far  from 
ten  millions.  There  are  four  millions  of  Irish  in  Ireland  ;  and  at 
their  rate  they  will  soon  be  up  to  the  original  number  again. 
There  are  certain  crimes,  and  sins,  and  excesses  of  which  the 
worst  Irishman  on  the  face  of  the  earth  knows  nothing,  I  thank 
my  God  ;  and,  so  long  as  we  preserve  our  Catholic  purity,  so  long 


1 82  The  Evils  of  Ireland  atid  their  Retnedy. 

will  the  energies  of  our  race  remain  in  us.  Perhaps,  to-day,  if 
the  men  of  the  Irish  race  and  the  Irish  blood  in  America  were 
counted  up  faithfully,  we  would  find  something  between  eight- 
een and  twenty  millions. 

Now,  if  they  were  sober,  temperate  men,  if  they  only  gave 
fair  play  to  the  brains  that   the  Almighty  gave  them,  and  fair 
play  to  the  energies  that  Almighty  God  gave  to  the  Irish  heart 
and  the   Irish  arm,  there   is  no  second  question   about  it,  they 
would  sweep  the  whole  country.     But   there  is  this  :  the  Irish- 
man who  drinks  is  poor,  and   contented  to   be  poor;  degraded, 
and  loving  his  degradation  ;  for  on  God's  earth  there  is  no  human 
being  so  degraded  as  the  poor,  unfortunate  drunkard.     I  don't 
say  the  Irishman  alone,  for  it  drags  down  every  other  man  as^ 
well ;  but,  somehow,  there  is  no  race  that  seems  to  sink  so  low 
under  the  curse  of  drink.     The  Englishman  takes  to  drink,  and 
cuts  his  throat — it  sets  him  mad.     Instead  of  doing  that  (which 
God   forbid  !)  the    Irish   are   not  given   to  that  sort   of  thing ; 
as  one   of    them   said,    "  I  would    rather    commit    suicide    on 
anybody  else  than  on  myself"     The   Irishman,  because,  after 
all,  he  has  faith,  does  not  do  that ;  but  he  drags  out  a  miser- 
able existence  in  degraded  and  wretched   poverty  ;    the  heart 
breaks    within    him ;    for  it    is    easier  to    discourage    an    Irish- 
man than  any  other,  through  drunkenness.     If  these  eighteen 
or  twenty  millions  were  sober  men,  I  say  all  the  influence  and 
all  the  power  of  America  would  be  so  swayed  and  directed  by 
the  action  of  her  citizens   of  Irish  birth,  that  the  greatest  and 
most  powerful  nation  on  the  face  of  the  earth   would  be  afraid  . 
to  lay  a  finger  on  old  Ireland.     For,  in  twenty  years'  time,  these 
United  States  of  America  will  have  grown  into  such   gigantic 
proportions  that  every  other  nation  will  be  dwarfed  in  compari- 
son.    In  that  day,  if  the  Irish  in  America  are  true  to  the  Cath- 
olic faith ;  if  they  are  united  in  the  golden  bond  of  that  faith, 
and  in  the  practice  of  that  faith  ;  and   if  they  are  sober  and 
temperate  men,  in  twenty  years'  time  this  race  of  the  Irish  will 
be  equal  in  glory  and  sanctity  to  the   stock  from  which  it  has 
been  transplanted  ;  just  as  the  seedling  in  the  heart  of  the  rose 
is  borne  upon  the  breeze  ;  and,  while  the  original  remains,  from 
the  new  seed  will  come  forth  another  rose,  as  fair  again.     So 


I 


The  Evils  of  Ireland  and  their  Remedy. 


183 


this  Celtic  race,  transported  by  the  storm  of  persecution  from 
the  "  Green  Island,"  like  the  acorn  springing  up  again  into 
the  vigorous  oak  upon  the  American  soil,  will  be  the  most 
powerful  race  on  the  face  of  God's  earth.  The  blessings  of 
earth  will  be  upon  it,  and  the  blessing  of  that  God  whose  faith 
it  has  ever  cherished,  will  come  down  upon  it  from  heaven. 


IRELAND'S   FAITH,  THE    TRIUMPH 

OF  THE  AGE. 


[Lecture  delivered  in  the  Academy  of  Music,  New  York,  in  aid  of  the  Institute  of 
Mercy,  Houston  street,  on  the  evening  of  October  15th,  1872. 

RELAND'S    Faith,  the  Triumph  of  the  Age."     This 
proposition  means  two  things  :     First,  that  Ireland's 
faith  Jias  triumphed  :  and,  second,  that  there  is  no  vic- 
tory which  this  age  of  ours  celebrates  that  can  be  com- 
pared to  the  victory  and  triumph  of  Ireland's  Catholic  faith. 

And  now,  I  am  reminded  at  the  very  outset,  that,  four  years 
ago,  I  met  a  poor  fellow  in  the  county  of  Galway ;  he  was  going 
along  the  road.  He  had  his  pipe  in  his  mouth,  and,  when  he  came 
up  and  saw  the  priest,  he  took  the  pipe  out  of  his  mouth,  and  with 
a  guilty  expression  of  countenance  he  put  it  behind  his  back. 
"  What  is  the  best  news,  your  reverence  ?  "  he  said.  "  Well,"  said 
I,  "  the  only  news  that  I  have  to  give  you,  is  that  they  are  making 
an  Act  of  Parliament  in  England,  declaring  that  the  Protestant 
Church  has  come  to  an  end  in  this  country,  and  it  is  no  longer 
to  be  the  established  religion  in  Ireland."  "  Do  you  mean  to 
tell  me,"  said  he,  "  that  the  English  Parliament  made  that  law  ?  " 
"Yes,  there  is  no  doubt  of  it,"  said  I.  "  Well,"  said  he,  "by 
the  piper  that  played  before  Moses,  I  never  heard  of  them 
making  any  law  for  the  Catholics  of  Ireland  before,  except  coer- 
cion bills,  pains  and  penalty  bills,  fines  upon  this,  and  taxation 
upon  that,  and  transportation  for  the  other  thing ;  and  I  don't 
know,"  said  he,  "  whether  it  was  God  or  the  devil  that  taught  them 
now  how  to  change."  And  then  the  poor,  illiterate  man  made 
use  of  a  remark  that  suggested  to  me  the  subject  of  this  eve- 
ning's lecture : — "  Well,  sir,"  said  he,  "  it  is  a  strange  thing  that 
they  should  have  disestablished  the  Protestant  Church.  We 
are  not  making  any  row  about  it ;  O'Connell  is  dead  and  in  his 


Ireland's  Faith,  the  Triumph  of  the  Age.  185 

grave ;  there  is  no  arming  now  going  on  ;  no  fighting  in  the 
country,  and  the  boys  all  so  quiet.  Isn't  it  a  strange  thing,  sir," 
said  he,  "  that  they  should  have  made  such  a  law?"  He  just 
touched  the  very  soul  and  centre  of  the  magnificence  of  this 
triumph  when  he  spoke  of  the  triumph  of  a  peaceful  people  over 
the  most  powerful  enemies  that  ever  rose  up  against  any  na- 
tion on  the  face  of  the  earth. 

That  Ireland's  faith  has  triumphed  we  behold  in  that  singular 
act  of  legislation  which,  after  three  hundred  years  of  penal  law 
and  persecution,  has  solemnly  declared,  countersigned  by  En- 
gland's Minister  and  England's  Queen,  that  they  have  tried  in 
vain  to  rob   Ireland  of  her  Catholic  faith  by  every  means  of 
bloodshed,   persecution,  and  confiscation  ;  that  they  acknowl- 
edge themselves  beaten,  and  have  been  obliged  to  lift  up,  over 
the  green  hills  of  Ireland,  the  sacred  standard  of  religious  lib- 
erty.    That  this  victory  is  unequaled   by  any  of  the  triumphs 
of  our  age  we  shall  see,  if  we  only  contemplate  the  things  that 
pass  around  us.  We  live,  my  dear  friends,  in  this  nineteenth  cen- 
tury, in  an  age  of  great  victories  and  great  defeats.    Within  the 
last  few  years  the  world  has  stood  aghast  and  astounded  at  the 
clash  of  arms,  and  the  magnitude  of  the  forces  that  were  hurled 
against  one  another  on  so  many  ensanguined  battle-fields.    The 
roar  of  artillery,  like  the  thunder  of  heaven,  such  as  was  never 
heard   upon  this  earth   before,  has   resounded  amidst  the   hills 
and  valleys  of  nearly  every  nation  in  Europe,  and  in  your  own 
great  country  of  America.     Great  issues  have  come  before  the 
nations  ;  great  principles  have   been   defended   and  attacked  ; 
great  defeats  have  been  recorded ;  and  great  was  the  exultation 
of  those  who  conquered,  in  the  moment  of  their  victory.     But, 
I  ask  you,  are  not  all  these  vulgar  and  commonplace  triumphs? 
To-day,  Bismarck,  Prime  Minister  of  Germany,  waves  his  victo- 
rious sword  over  the  prostrate  form  of  the  great  and  generous 
nation  which  he  has  succeeded  in  conquering.     But,  if  he  shouts 
out,  "Victory!    Fatherland  forever!     Victory!"   he  must  re- 
member that  he  had  to  purchase  that  victory  from  old  France 
at  the  cost  of  the  best  blood  that  flowed  in  the  German  veins. 
He  must  remember  that,  before  he  was  able  to  cry  out  "  Victo- 
ry! "  he  was  obliged  to  have  twelve  hundred  thousand  men  at 
his  back.     It  is  easy  to  proclaim  triumph  with  such  a  force  ;  but 
the  victory  is  commonplace  and  vulgar ;  it  is  a  triumph  of  brute, 


l8t)  Ireland's  Faith,  the  Triumph  of  the  Age. 

material  force,  such  as  the  worid  has  often  witnessed,  since  the 
day  that  Cain  shed  his  brother's  blood,  down  to  this  hour. 
France,  in  her  turn,  has  had  her  glorious  moments,  when, 
flushed  with  victory,  she  unfurled  her  tricolor  standard  over  the 
fields  of  Lombardy  and  of  Italy ;  but  around  her,  in  that  mo- 
ment of  her  triumph,  lay  the  best  and  bravest  of  her  sons  in 
death.  Here,  in  your  own  land,  blood  has  been  shed.  A  great 
question  had  to  be  decided,  and  could  not  be  decided  without 
the  arbitrament  of  the  sword.  But,  where  was  the  man  in 
America,  in  the  hour  of  your  victory — where  was  the  man,  even 
whilst  he  was  crying  out  the  victory  of  the  land,  that  was  not 
generous  enough  to  shed  a  tear  over  the  brave  and  magnificent 
army  which  you  had  conquered.  In  a  word,  the  triumph  of  force 
over  force  is  a  commonplace  thing  that  takes  place  every  day. 
But  it  is  only  once  in  a  generation — only  once  in  an  age,  perhaps 
not  even  once — that  we  find  a  triumph  of  great  principles — a 
triumph  of  a  high,  noble  idea,  clasped  to  the  mind  and  to  the 
heart  of  a  people;  defended  through  centuries  of  sorrow  and  of 
bloodshed  ;  and,  at  length,  crowned  in  that  faithful  people  with 
the  crown  of  an  unblemished  and  unstained  victory.  No  blood- 
shed in  the  moment  of  their  triumph  ;  no  saddening  recollections 
thronging  around  it ;  nothing  but  an  assertion  of  the  power  of 
God,  and  the  hand  of  God  making  itself  visible  in  the  councils 
even  of  the  nation  that  resisted  Him  for  three  hundred  years. 

Now,  my  friends,  such  were  the  conditions  of  Ireland's  vic- 
tory ;  and  such  was  the  promise  that  God  made.  Among  the 
titles  of  God — which  He  takes  to  Himself — there  is  that  of 
King  of  kings,  and  Conqueror  of  kings;  but  He  also  calls  Him- 
self the  King  of  peace — Rex  pacts  ;  a  King  who  will  assert  His 
sovereignty,  but  not  with  the  sword  ;  a  King  who  will  proclaim 
His  triumph  in  His  own  time,  and  whom  nothing  can  resist. 
When  the  triumph  comes,  the  brows  of  the  victor  are  crowned 
with  the  crown  of  peace.  Such  is  the  description  given  of  the 
victories  of  God.  My  friends,  what  is  the  element  which  God 
Himself  has  declared  shall  be  and  must  be,  unto  the  end  of 
time,  the  secret  of  a  nation's,  as  well  as  a  man's,  triumph?  It  is 
divine  faith.  "  This,"  says  St.  John,  "  this  is  the  victory  which 
overcometh  the  world — our  faith."  What  does  faith  mean  } 
Faith  is  the  virtue  by  which  the  intellect  of  man  apprehends 
God,  and  beholds  Him  with  the  eye  of  the  mind,  not  with  the 


Ireland's  Faith,  the  Triumph  of  the  Age.  187 

eye  of  the  body.  Faith  is  the  divine  virtue  by  which  the  minds 
of  men,  or  of  nations,  are  put  in  relation,  direct  and  immediate, 
with  the  eternal  truth  of  God.  The  highest  grace  that  God 
gives  to  any  man,  or  to  any  people,  is  the  faculty  of  rightly 
comprehending  Him  by  true  faith ;  out  of  which  grows  the 
passion  of  love,  which  puts  that  faith  and  that  God  above  all 
things.  It  is  not  every  man,  nor  is  it  every  nation,  that  receives 
this  high  grace.  It  is  offered  to  all,  but  it  is  not  accepted  by 
all.  Nothing  is  more  common  than  for  men  and  nations  to  set 
up  some  distorted  view  of  their  own,  and  say  :  "  Lo  !  this  is  the 
voice  of  God  ;  "  and  to  their  own  opinion  they  pin  their  faith. 
Nothing  is  more  common  than  for  men  and  nations,  in  hours  of 
trial  and  difficulty,  to  change  their  faith — to  deny  to-day  that 
which  they  believed  yesterday  ;  to  give  up  their  faith  ;  to  say: 
"  We  cannot  cling  to  that  form  of  divine  knowledge  that  even 
God  has  given  us  ;  we  cannot  cling  to  it — it  is  at  too  dear  a 
cost.  We  cannot  afford  to  give  up  property,  liberty,  and  life — 
everything  in  this  world — rather  than  lose  that  faith."  No ; 
they  give  it  up,  renounce  it ;  and  the  world  has  seen,  over  and 
over  again,  the  terrible  spectacle  of  nations  changing  their  faith, 
and  shaking  off  their  God.  But  there  is  one  race  amongst  the 
races,  one  nation  amongst  the  nations,  that  received,  fifteen 
hundred  years  ago,  this  divine  and  high  grace  from  God,  and 
the  mind  of  that  people  keenly,  clearly,  and  almost  instinctively 
grasped  the  divine  truth  of  God  ;  and  the  heart  of  that 
nation  was  so  warmed  into  life  by  that  faith,  that  the  people, 
like  one  man,  were  prepared  to  suffer  and  to  die,  rather  than  to 
ever  give  it  up,  or  change  it  from  what  they  had  received.  I 
say  one  race  amongst  the  races,  one  nation  amongst  the  nations  ; 
for  I  find  that  the  Eastern  nations,  who  received  that  divine 
faith  from  the  apostles,  forgot  it — changed  it — under  the  perse- 
cutions of  the  schismatic  Greek  emperors,  or  under  the  terrible 
hand  of  Mohammed.  I  find  that  the  civilized  nations  of  Eu- 
rope have,  from  time  to  time,  thought  very  little,  indeed,  of 
changing  that  faith.  Where,  to-day,  is  the  Catholic  faith  that 
was  once  the  crown  of  England?  Where,  to-day,  is  the  glorious 
faith  that  once  reigned  supreme  in  Prussia  and  Northern  Ger- 
many? Where,  to-day,  is  the  Catholic  faith  that  was  once  so 
dearly  loved  and  so  excellently  practised  in  Scandinavia,  in 
Sweden,  and  in   Norway  ?     Where  is  it  ?     It  is  amongst  the 


1 88  Ireland's  Faith,  the  Triumph  of  the  Age. 

traditions  of  the  past.  Its  record  tells  of  the  perversion  of  the 
peoples.  But  where,  to-day,  is  the  faith  that,  fifteen  hundred 
years  ago,  Patrick  preached  in  Ireland  ?  It  is  in  the  mind  and 
in  the  heart  of  the  Irish  race  wherever  they  are,  all  over  the 
world.  It  is  there,  as  pure  as  it  was  when  the  message  came 
from  the  lips  of  Ireland's  Apostle  ;  it  is  as  pure  now,  in  the 
Irish  mind  and  heart,  and  as  dear  to  the  nation,  as  on  the  day 
when  it  was  the  crown  of  Ireland's  glory — as  dear  to  the  nation 
as  it  was  on  the  day  when  it  was  the  blood-stained  treasure 
that  she  held  with  her  agonizing  and  dying  hands  !  Is  not  this 
a  great  grace?  To  apprehend  so  instinctively  and  keenly,  to 
accept  so  joyfully  and  willingly,  to  hold  so  firmly  and  deter- 
minedly, that  knowledge  of  God  which  comes,  not  by  the  evi- 
dence of  the  senses,  though  it  comes  by  hearing — that  faith 
which  is  defined  by  St.  Paul  to  be  the  argument  of  things  that 
do  not  appear,  and  the  substance  of  things  that  are  not  beheld. 
Ireland  received  that  faith  more  than  a  thousand  years  before 
Columbus  landed  upon  the  shores  of  America.  Ireland  held 
that  faith  with  the  divine  power  of  grace,  and  with  the  instinct 
of  fidelity  unexampled  amongst  nations.  Ireland,  more  than 
any  other  country,  has  been  put  to  the  test  of  suffering,  in  order 
that  she  might  be  able  not  only  to  assert,  but  to  prove  to  the 
world,  to  the  end  of  time,  that  God  never  had  a  more  faithful 
people  than  the  Irish  race.  To  save  their  people,  the  nations 
of  the  East  lost  their  ancient,  Apostolic,  Catholic  faith,  under 
the  persecutions  of  Arianism  and  the  schismatic  Greek  emper- 
ors, or  under  the  heavy  hand  of  Mohammed  and  his  followers. 
But  tell  me — What  was  Henry  the  Eighth,  of  England,  with 
regard  to  Ireland  ?  What  was  his  daughter  Elizabeth?  What 
was  James  the  First?  What  were  the  Charleses,  First  and 
Second  ?  What  was  William,  Prince  of  Orange,  or  the  house  of 
Hanover,  but  what  the  Arian  schismatics  and  Greek  emperors 
were  over  the  East  ?  What  was  Oliver  Cromwell  ?  He  was  to 
Ireland  what  Mohammed  was  to  Arabia.  Terrible  even  as  was 
the  sword  of  the  false  prophet,  it  never  was  steeped  like  that 
of  the  villainous  and  canting  hypocrite  who  wet  and  stained 
his  sword  in  the  best  blood  of  Ireland. 

But  God  has  said  that  wherever  faith  is,  that  faith  must 
triumph.  All  we  have  to  do  is  to  look  at  it  for  a  moment,  and 
behold  the  necessity  of  God's  justice  being  vindicated  in  His 


Ireland's  Faith,  the  Triumph  of  the  Age.  189 

word.  To  attempt  to  force  a  man's  belief,  to  attempt  to  impose 
belief  on  him  at  the  point  of  the  sword,  to  attempt  to  drive 
dogmas  of  faith  down  his  throat  by  the  force  of  the  bayonet's 
point,  this  is  the  most  extraordinary  delusion  that  ever  entered 
into  the  minds  of  men  or  of  nations.  There  is  only  one  sword 
that  can  reach  the  soul  of  man  ;  and  that  is  the  sword  of  the 
Spirit,  which  is  the  divine  Word  of  God.  There  is  only  one 
power  that  can  induce  a  man  to  bend  his  mind  unto  moral  be- 
lief in  Christ,  his  Saviour ;  and  that  one  power  is  the  power  of 
divine  grace,  coming  down  from  heaven,  flowing  forth  from 
the  lips  of  some  apostolic  preacher,  falling  upon  the  ear  of  the 
listener,  and  penetrating  into  his  heart,  moulding  his  spirit 
through  that  agency  of  faith,  and  not  through  the  power  that 
appeals  to  the  arm  of  flesh.  With  coercion  bills,  penal  laws, 
or  any  other  agency,  to  bind  or  to  force  the  faith  of  a  peo- 
ple is  simply  "  a  mockery,  a  delusion,  and  a  snare."  There  is 
as  much  difference,  therefore,  between  that  which  is  attacked, 
namely,  faith,  and  the  weapons  by  which  it  is  attacked,  namely, 
the  weapons  of  persecution,  as  there  is  between  spirit  and  mat- 
ter, as  there  is  between  eternity  and  time,  as  there  is  between 
heaven  and  earth,  as  there  is  between  God  and  the  devil. 

And  yet,  strange  to  say,  for  three  hundred  years,  the  wisdom 
of  England — that  wise,  highly-educated  nation — labored  to  effect 
this  diabolical  miracle !  The  power  of  England  was  concen- 
trated upon  this  one  object.  Three  hundred  years  ago,  the  con- 
test that  had  been  waged  for  four  hundred  years  before,  on  the 
question  of  Ireland's  nationality,  was  renewed  upon  a  different 
battle-field.  For  four  hundred  years  our  fathers  had  stood  and 
fought  for  Ireland's  freedom  and  for  Ireland's  native  rights. 
They  fought  with  divided  hearts,  and  with  divided  councils. 
With  a  weak  and  faltering  arm  did  they  deal  the  national  blow. 
Heroes  fell  ;  and  the  nation  wept  over  her  lost  children  the  bit- 
ter tears  of  disappointment  and  regret.  Never,  during  these 
four  hundred  years,  was  Ireland  united.  It  is  a  sad  and 
humiliating  fact,  but  I  am  obliged  to  confess  it.  Only  that  I 
love  my  country  so  dearly  ;  only  that  I  am  so  proud  of  my  na- 
tion and  of  my  blood ;  only  that  I  know  well  that  these  are 
your  feelings  also,  I  would  not  say  that  word.  Next  to  God 
every  man  must  love  his  native  land.  Next  to  the  blow  which 
he  is  prepared  to  deal  in  defense  of  his  sacred  altar ;  next  in 


190  Ireland's  Faith,  the   Triumph  of  the  Age. 

energy,  rtext  in  force  and  determination,  should  be  the  blow  he 
deals  in  defense  of  the  sacred  liberties  of  his  country.  God 
teaches  us,  by  a  natural  instinct,  to  love  the  land  that  bore  us  ; 
and  religion  hallows  the  virtue  of  patriotism  ;  for  the  latest  of 
Ireland's  canonized  saints  was  the  only  man  whose  clarion  voice 
was  heard  from  end  to  end  of  Old  Ireland,  crying :  "  Arm  !  arm  ! 
ye  men  of  Erin  !  Come  with  me,  and  let  us  drive  the  invader 
from  our  soil."  When  he  failed,  his  Irish  heart  broke  within  him, 
to  see  that  the  cause  was  lost.  And  the  Catholic  Church  canon- 
ized him  for  his  virtues,  amongst  which  was  his  glorious  patriot- 
ism. Yet  I  blush  to  say,  dear  as  the  cause  was,  important  as 
the  cause  was,  it  was  never  able,  during  the  first  four  hundred 
years  of  the  English  invasion,  to  rally  and  unite  the  hearts  and 
hands  of  all  Irishmen. 

But,  after  four  hundred  years  of  unavailing  contest,  when 
the  nation  seemed  to  be  heart-broken,  when  the  national 
arm  seemed  to  be  paralyzed  by  stroke  after  stroke  of 
disaster,  when  Ireland  seemed  to  have  lost,  or  began  to 
lose,  even  her  faith  in  her  nationality — the  English  king, 
fortunately  for  us,  fortunately  for  our  history,  fortunately 
for  the  dignity  of  our  national  cause — the  King  of  England 
called  upon  Ireland  to  give  up  her  Catholic  faith.  He  called 
upon  a  nation  that  he  had  almost  conquered.  He  called  upon 
a  nation  that  he  had  already  seen  divided.  He  called  upon 
a  people  that  seemed  to  be  incapable  of  rallying  even  in 
defense  of  their  liberties.  He  said  to  them :  "You  must  re- 
nounce your  Catholic  religion.  You  must  forget  Patrick's  gos- 
pel, and  Patrick's  name.  You  must  abjure  and  blaspheme  the 
Mother  of  Jesus  Christ !  You  must  turn  your  backs  upon  the 
graves  of  your  dead — forget  them,  nor  hallow  their  resting- 
places  with  sacrifice  or  prayer  any  more.  You  must  take  the 
crucifix  from  off  the  altar  and  trample  it  under  foot."  This  was 
the  message  that  the  saintly  d^nd  pious  Henry  the  Eighth  sent  to 
Ireland.  But,  lo  !  in  one  instant,  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye,  he 
was  astounded  to  see  that  Ireland  was  united  as  one  man  against 
him.  He  recoiled.  He  recoiled  at  the  sight.  It  struck  terror 
into  his  heart.  He  had  succeeded  in  uniting  Ireland  upon  the 
glorious  issue  of  Ireland's  faith ;  and  wherever  Henry  the 
Eighth's  soul  is  to-night,  as  an  Irishman  and  as  a  Catholic 
priest,  I  thank  him  for  the  message  which  he  sent  to  Ireland. 


Ireland's  Faith,  the  Triumph  of  the  Age.  191 

At  once  the  Irish  people  assumed  the  majesty  and  dignity  of  a 
great  nation.  The  sword  that  was  about  to  be  sheathed  was 
grasped  again  in  the  nation's  hands.  Hero  after  hero  stood 
at  the  front  on  many  a  battle-field.  Amidst  the  bloodshed 
and  cries  of  victory,  Ireland  has  proclaimed,  for  these  three  hun- 
dred years,  that,  as  sure  as  there  was  a  God  in  heaven,  so  sure 
would  Ireland's  altar  stand,  and  her  Catholic  faith  remain  with 
her  until  the  end  of  time. 

My  friends,  it  is  really  worthy  of  our  attention  as  Irishmen, 
and  as  sons  of  Irishmen.  During  the  first  four  hundred  years 
that  the  English  were  in  Ireland,  the  country  was  divided — 
every  little  chieftain  fighting  with  his  fellow-chieftain,  trying  to 
patch  up  a  peace,  or  trying  to  curry  favor  with  the  English ; 
aye,  and  playing  into  the  hands  of  their  strong  and  merciless 
invaders.  There  is  positively  no  man  that  loves  Ireland  can 
read  the  history  of  the  first  four  hundred  years  of  the  English 
and  Saxon  invasion,  without  being  ashamed  and  grieved  for  his 
country.  But  the  moment  he  comes  to  the  question  of  Ireland's 
religion  being  attacked — and  it  is  the  record  of  three  hundred 
years — that  moment  I  rise  and  lay  my  hand  proudly  on  the  an- 
nals of  my  country.  Show  me  the  history  of  the  nation — show 
me  the  pages  that  record  as  much  bravery,  as  much  determina- 
tion, and  such  a  magnificent  spirit  of  fidelity,  as  the  history  of 
the  religious  contest  for  the  last  three  centuries  in  Ireland. 
Ah !  Henry  found,  indeed,  that  he  had  touched  the  rallying 
centre  of  Irish  Union  in  their  religion,  the  moment  he  laid  his 
finger  on  that  religion.  He  had  no  longer  to  put  down  some 
little  petty  prince  in  Connaught,  or  some  king  in  Ulster.  He 
had  no  longer  to  deal  with  some  sept  in  the  mountains  of  Wick- 
low.  He  had  no  longer  to  pit  McCarthy  Mor,  standing  alone, 
against  the  King  of  Munster;  he  was  no  longer  able  to  put  up 
one  Irish  chieftain  against  another ;  he  was  no  longer  able  to 
foment  treason  or  treachery  amongst  them.  No  !  Like  one  man 
the  voice  of  Ireland  came  forth  from  out  the  mouth,  and  from 
out  the  Catholic  heart,  and  Catholic  brain  :  "  Never,  never, 
English  King ;  even  though  you  call  to  your  aid  all  the  powers 
of  earth,  and  all  the  devils  in  hell ;  never  shall  you  succeed 
in  wresting  from  Ireland  her  sacred  Catholic  faith."  Now,  my 
friends,  the  contest  raged  with  uncertain  results.  Generally 
speaking,  we  were  victorious ;  sometimes  we  were  defeated.     I 


192  Ireland's  Faith^  the  Triumph  of  the  Age. 

can  call  to  your  recollection  the  glorious  name  of  Hugh  O'Neill, 
when  he  stood  at  the  Yellow  Ford,  and  didn't  let  one  English 
soldier  escape  from  under  his  hand.  I  can  recall,  with  joy  and 
with  pride,  the  day  when  Owen  Roe  O'Neill  marched  with  his 
gallant  Irish  army  to  Benburb,  and  shattered  to  pieces  the  flow- 
er of  English  chivalry.  But  if  there  was  an  Englishman  here 
he  would  be  able  to  remind  me  of  the  day  when  we  were  broken 
on  the  banks  of  the 

"  Boyne's  ill-fated  river." 

He  would  remind  me  of  the  day  when  the  bravest  of  Ireland's 
soldiers  were  hurled  from  the  bridge  of  Athlone  into  the  Shan- 
non, swollen  with  the  winter's  rain,  and  bearing  upon  its  lovely 
bosom,  out  into  the  Western  Ocean,  the  corpses  of  the  best  and 
bravest  men  of  Ireland.  He  might  remind  me  of  the  day  when 
Patrick  Sarsfield  went  forth,  a  sad  and  heart-broken  man, 
from  the  heroic  walls  of  brave  and  immortal  Limerick.  There- 
fore, the  history  of  this  great  contest  has  been  one  of  alternate 
victory  and  defeat;  of  alternate  joy  and  sorrow.  But,  one 
thing  is  certain :  there  was  no  doubt  that  no  defeat  that  we 
suffered  ever  yet  extinguished  Ireland's  love  for  her  faith,  Ire- 
land's love  for  her  nationality,  and  for  her  freedom.  The 
tyrant  who  called  upon  Ireland  to  become  Protestant,  also 
called  upon  Ireland  to  bow  down  as  a  mere  province  of  the 
British  Empire;  and  Ireland  said:  "No;  I  will  be  a  Catholic 
nation ;  and  I  will  be  a  nation  unto  the  end  of  time." 

But,  when  the  victory  came,  it  was  still,  after  so  many  battles, 
a  peaceful  one.  God  had  ordained  it,  and  pre-ordained  it,  in 
His  own  way.  In  the  beginning  of  this  century,  which  is  now 
drawing  to  a  close,  Ireland  lay  prostrate,  after  the  unsuccessful 
rebellion  of  1798.  I  have  often  heard  it  remarked  that  the  men 
of  Wicklow  and  the  men  of  Wexford  are  considered  the  finest 
specimens  of  the  Irish  peasantry.  Go  through  the  villages,  pass 
along  the  highways,  pass  down  near  the  eastern  shores  of  Ire- 
land, and  every  man  that  you  meet  is  as  straight  as  a  lance  ; 
broad-shouldered,  with  heads  erect,  and  a  fearless  light  in  their 
dark-blue  or  hazel  eyes,  looking  at  you  with  the  glance  of  a 
mountain  eagle.  You  might  well  be  afraid  of  a  contest  with 
them  upon  the  field  of  battle.  .  Well,  in  the  year  1799,  the  last 
year  of  the  century,  these  men  of  Wexford  and  Wicklow  were 


Ireland's  Faith,  the   Triumph  of  the  Age.  193 

hunted  through  Ireland  like  wild  foxes  or  wolves.  A  price  was 
set  on  their  heads.  Thirty-six  thousand  English  soldiers  were 
in  pursuit  of  these  brave  and  heroic,  though  misguided  men. 
Their  blood  was  shed  not  only  in  the  fair  fight  of  battle ;  their 
blood  was  shed  in  treachery,  as  when  ninety  of  them  were 
slaughtered  upon  the  Hill  of  Tara,  after  they  had  given  up  their 
arms.  Ireland  beheld  her  two  famous  counties,  Wexford  and 
Wicklow,  a  desert,  filled  with  English  troops,  and  English 
yeomanry ;  and  nowhere  were  the  people  able  to  lift  their 
heads ;  bowed  down,  oppressed,  and  stricken.  England  took 
advantage  of  that  hour,  and  she  bribed  an  Irishman  to  sell  his 
country.  She  took  from  us  the  last  vestige  of  our  legislative 
assembly,  the  power  of  making  our  own  laws.  She  took  the 
Parliament  from  College  Green,  in  Dublin,  and  she  set  up,  pub- 
licly, the  principle  that  Englishmen  had  a  right  to  make  laws 
for  Irishmen.  She  was  able  to  do  it;  and,  in  the  year  1800, 
she  had  stamped  out  the  rebellion  in  the  blood  of  the  people,, 
which  flowed  on  the  virgin  plains  of  Ireland.  The  heart  of  the- 
nation  seemed  to  be  broken.  Castlereagh  was  an  Irishman. 
Castlereagh  sold  his  country  ;  and  he  cut  his  own  throat  from, 
ear  to  ear  ;  he  sawed  away  with  the  razor  as  if  he  would  cut  his 
head  off;  and  they  found  upon  his  dead  face  a  grin  of  despair, 
with  a  certain  expression,  as  if  he  -died  defying  and  blaspheming 
the  God  that  made  him. 

Well,  my  friends,  the  century  opened  thus.  Ireland's  Par- 
liament was  gone  ;  Ireland's  heart  was  broken.  Nothing  re- 
mained to  Ireland  but  her  people  and  her  faith.  Her  people 
were  still  at  home ;  her  faith  was  still  in  their  minds  and  in 
their  hearts  ;  and,  starved,  heart-broken  as  she  was,  she  still 
had  the  two  highest  gifts  that  God  can  give  a  nation — divine 
faith,  and  a  plentiful,  strong,  and  loving  people.  The  people 
remained;  and,  in  the  year  1828,  there  were  eight  millions  of 
them  in  Ireland.  God  gave  them  another  great  and  high  gift ; 
He  gave  them  an  Irish  leader — a  giant  in  bodily  frame  ;  a  giant 
in  the  proportions  of  his  mighty  intellect ;  a  giant  in  his  energj% 
and  the  power  with  which  he  was  to  shake  the  English  Legis- 
lature with  the  loud  cry  of  Justice  to  Ireland.  A  giant  in  his 
lion  heart,  that  never  knew  fear — he  stood  before  the  nation  as 
a  representative  Irishman — the  glory  and  pride  of  Ireland,  and 
the  terror  of  her  enemies — Daniel  O'Connell,  the  Kerryman ! 

13 


194  Ireland's  Faith,  the   Triumph  of  the  Age. 

He  came,  when  he  had  eight  millions  at  his  back,  and  he  stood 
before  the  doors  of  the  House  of  Commons  that  were  closed 
against  him.  With  the  voice  of  eight  millions  thundering  upon 
his  lips,  he  smote  those  doors,  and  said :  "  Open  to  me,  oh  !  ye 
doors  !  closed  by  the  demon  of  iniquity  and  of  bigotry !  Open 
to  me  and  to  my  people  ;  I  demand  it  in  the  name  of  the  God  of 
religious  liberty,  and  in  the  name  of  the  God  of  justice !  "  His 
voice  was  as  the  voice  of  a  saint  storming  the  gates  of  heaven 
with  the  united  power  of  his  prayers.  His  voice  fell  upon  the 
lintels  of  those  doors  as  the  blast  of  Joshua's  trumpet  fell  upon 
the  walls  of  Jericho  ;  and,  as  the  strong  walls  of  the  city 
crumbled  and  fell  down  before  the  voice  of  Israel's  trumpet,  so, 
at  the  sound  of  the  voice  of  Ireland's  Tribune,  the  doors  that 
had  been  closed  against  us  for  three  hundred  years — the  doors 
that  had  been  sealed  with  Irish  blood,  in  the  determination 
that  they  should  never  open  to  an  Irish  Catholic — rolled 
asunder  ;  and  into  the  midst  of  the  terrified  bigots  and  lords 
of  England,  stalked  the  mighty  and  terrible  Irishman,  Daniel 
O'Connell.  Ah  !  my  friends,  it  was  like  letting  a  bull  into  a 
china  shop.  He  played  the  ''Old  Harry"  with  some  of  them. 
He  alarmed  the  country  in  every  direction.  The  first  English 
statesmen  were  obliged  to  listen  to  him ;  and  the  greatest 
bulhes  that  ever  met  him  got  afraid  of  their  lives  of  that  eye 
that  could  look  so  terrible  upon  an  adversary — that  eye  that 
threw  so  keen  and  quick  a  glance  over  the  leveled  pistol,  when 
he  pointed  at  the  heart  of  D'Esterre. 

The  victory  was  gained  for  Catholic  Emancipation.  But  still 
there  remained  the  old,  time-worn,  detested  citadel  of  "the 
Protestant  Church  of  Ireland."  Now,  mark.  When  the  apostle 
is  discoursing  upon  the  Catholic  Church,  he  says  ;  "  She  is  built 
upon  the  foundation  of  the  prophets  and  apostles,  the  great  cor- 
ner-stone being  Jesus  Christ,  our  Lord."  Was  the  Protestant 
Church  in  Ireland  built  upon  a  foundation  of  prophets  and  apos- 
tles? Well,  my  friends,  if  Henry  VIII.  was  a  prophet  or  an 
apostle,  I  give  the  thing  up.  If  Queen  Elizabeth  was  either 
prophet  or  apostle,  she  was  one  of  the  founders  of  that  church, 
and  they  are  welcome  to  her.  So,  also,  are  they  welcome 
to  their  other  apostle — Loftus,  Queen  Elizabeth's  Protestant 
Archbishop  of  Dublin — who  wrote  such  a  nice  letter  about  how 
he  was  putting  the  Irish  to  death,  and  how  they  writhed  in 


Ireland' s  Faith,  the   Triumph  of  the  Age.  195 

the  torture.  He  asked  permission  of  the  Council  in  London  to 
put  to  death  the  hoary  Catholic  bishop  who  was  once  the  guest 
of  this  queenly  ghoul,  their  mistress.  Do  you  know  how  it  was 
done?  It  was  in  Dublin  ;  and  there  the  old  Archbishop  of  Ar- 
magh was  brought  out,  in  St.  Stephen's  Green.  They  tied  the 
old  man  to  a  stake  ;  they  put  tin  boots  upon  him  filled  with 
rosin  and  pitch  ;  and  with  a  slow  fire  around  his  feet,  they 
roasted  him  to  death  slowly.  These  were  the  traditions  on 
which  the  Protestant  Church  was  founded  in  Ireland.  God  for- 
bid that  I  should  entertain  or  preach  animosity  between  any 
Catholic  and  any  Protestant.  I  am  not  alluding  to  Protestants 
at  all  ;  I  am  talking  of  their  old  "  Mumbo  Jumbo  "  of  a  Church. 
But,  even  though  O'Connell  sat  down  in  Parliament,  there  was 
a  cry  of  pain  from  the  Catholics  of  Ireland.  Even  though  many 
of  the  penal  laws  were  wiped  out  of  the  blood-stained  statute- 
book  by  that  powerful  hand,  there  still  remained  this  old  Prot- 
estant Church,  and  the  Protestant  bishops  going  to  London  to 
make  laws  (God  bless  the  mark !)  for  you  and  me.  These  were 
7iice  laws  !  If  a  landlord  in  any  part  of  Ireland  swore  that 
somebody  had  fired  a  shot  at  him  from  behind  a  hedge,  he 
wasn't  asked  to  produce  the  pistol  nor  the  man  that  fired  the  shot, 
nor  to  show  where  the  ball  made  a  hole  in  his  hat.  He  wasn't 
asked  for  any  proof,  if  he  said,  "  'Pon  his  honor  he  was  fired  at — 
a  desperate  thing!" — the  whole  side  of  a  country  would  be 
"  proclaimed  ;  "  no  man  could  go  about  his  proper  business  after 
certain  hours ;  and  the  people  of  a  whole  district  would  be  im- 
prisoned. You  have  all  heard  of  a  judge  who  sat  upon  the 
bench.  He  was  a  joker  of  jokes;  and  very  good  jokes  he  some- 
times made — capital  jokes.  He  was  particularly  fond  of  a 
morning's  good  work  and  good  jokes,  when  he  had  some  poor 
fellows  before  him  whom  he  was  about  to  sentence  to  death. 
On  one  occasion,  there  were  five  or  six  poor  Irishmen  brought 
up  ;  and  Lord  Norbury — this  pleasant  judge — sentenced  them  all 
to  death ;  but  he  forgot  the  name  of  one  of  them  :  and  when 
they  were  going  out  in  the  hangman's  company,  the  sheriff  said, 
*'  My  lord,  you  have  forgotten  to  sentence  Darby  Sullivan." 
"  Oh!  dear  me,"  said  his  lordship  ;  "  Darby,  come  here  ;  I  have 
a  word  to  say  to  you,  Darby,  I  beg  your  pardon.  I  had  forgot- 
ten your  name  when  I  was  passing  sentence ;  but  it  is  better 
late  than  never.     So  you  will,  of  course,  be  taken  out  to-mor- 


196  Ireland's  Faith,  the   Triumph  of  the  Age. 

row  morning,  and  be  hanged  by  the  neck  until  you  are  dead. 
And  may  the  Lord  have  mercy  on  your  soul!"  "Spare  the 
prayer,"  said  the  poor  man  who  was  going  to  his  death. 
"  Spare  the  prayer.  Don't  pray  for  me.  I  never  knew  anybody 
to  prosper  after  your  prayers." 

There  remained  that  Protestant  Church,  full  of  money,  and 
usurping  the  ancient  titles  of  the  true  Church  of  God,  the  old 
Church  of  St.  Patrick,  in  Ireland  ;  upholding  itself  on  the  power 
and  the  wealth  of  England  ;  absorbing  every  vital  resource  of 
the  country.  If  anybody  asked  :  '*  To  what  Church  does  the  Irish 
nation  belong?  "  "  Oh !  the  Protestant  Church  is  the  Church  of 
Ireland!"  was  the  reply.  The  Protestant  Church  the  Church 
of  Ireland!  Why,  there  was  a  parish  priest  down  in  the  County 
Cork ;  and  he  was  called  in  to  the  assizes  to  give  evidence  on 
some  question  or  other.  The  Protestant  Lord  Chief  Justice 
was  a  little  bigoted  ;  so  he  said  to  the  priest:  '' My  good  sir, 
will  you  be  kind  enough  to  tell  me  how  many  Protestants  there 
are  in  your  parish  ?  "  '^Not  one,  glory  be  to  the  Father,  Son, 
and  Holy  Ghost,"  said  the  priest.  When  Dean  Swift  went 
once  to  preach  a  sermon,  his  congregation  consisted  of  Roger, 
the  clerk  ;  and  so  he  began  :  "  Dearly  beloved  Roger."  And 
they  tell  us  a  story  even  of  a  Protestant  minister  coming  to  the 
parish  priest,  and  saying  to  him  :  "  Our  bishop  is  coming  down 
to  look  at  the  parish  ;  and  he'll  see  so  few  Protestants,  that  I 
want  you  to  lend  me  a  congregation."  According  to  the  story 
(which,  of  course,  is  only  a  story),  the  Catholic  priest  did  lend 
him  a  few  of  his  congregation  ;  and  when  the  Protestant  bishop 
came  and  saw  the  decent  people  so  quiet,  none  of  them  opening 
their  mouths,  according  to  the  old  chroniclers,  he  said  :  "  By  this 
blessed  book,  that  is  the  decentest  congregation  that  ever  I  saw." 

There,  however,  that  Church  remained,  staring  us  in  the  face, 
insulting  the  mighty  Catholic  nation,  the  great  Catholic  race ; 
insulting  them,  both  at  home  and  abroad,  by  calling  itself 
"  the  Church  of  Ireland !  "  Well,  now  comes  the  wonderful 
part  of  the  business.  O'Connell  was  in  his  grave ;  the  Irish 
people  were  peaceable ;  there  was  no  agitation ;  we  were  not 
holding  any  public  meetings  to  discountenance  and  denounce 
the  Protestant  Church.  We  did  not  send  any  petitions  to  Par- 
liament to  solicit  the  abolition  of  the  Protestant  Church.  There 
was  nothing  at  all  going  on  in  the  country.     There  was  just  a 


Ireland's  Faith,  the   Triumph  of  the  Age.  igj 

little  whiff  from  America,  just  as  if  a  man  took  a  cigar  out  of 
his  mouth,  and  let  out  a  little  smoke,  as  much  as  to  say,  "There 
may  be  fire  where  there  is  smoke."  But  Ireland  was  not  only 
peaceable,  she  was  almost  indifferent.  The  hour  of  God  came. 
God  had  been  looking  at  this  nation,  robbed,  and  plundered, 
stricken  ;  aye,  and  put  to  death.  For  three  hundred  years,  the 
voice  of  the  saints,  the  martyred  saints  of  Ireland,  had  demand- 
ed justice.  The  voice  of  the  martyrs,  from  their  graves  in 
Ireland,  clamored  for  God's  hour  to  come,  God's  hour  came  ; 
and  a  voice,  apparently  from  heaven,  whispered  in  the  ear  of 
the  English  Premier — "  Put  an  end  to  the  Protestant  Church  in 
Ireland.  Its  hour  has  come  ;  it  has  been  tried  and  failed  ;  it 
has  been  weighed  in  the  balance  and  found  wanting.  There  is 
blood  upon  its  hands  ;  there  is  blood  upon  its  face.  Let  it  de- 
part. Let  it  go,  with  all  the  other  falsehoods,  with  all  the  other 
hypocrisies  that  have  faded  out  of  the  world."  And,  to  our 
astonishment,  Wm.  Ewart  Gladstone,  the  Prime  Minister  of  Eng- 
land, called  upon  the  English  Parliament  to  make  a  law  that  the 
Protestant  Church  was  to  cease  to  exist  as  the  Church  of  Ireland. 
The  law  was  passed  ;  and  the  Queen — the  head  of  the  Church, 
mind  you — was  obliged  to  sign  the  bill  with  her  own  hand. 
Fancy  the  Pope  signing  an  act  declaring  that  the  Catholic 
Church  wasn't  to  exist  any  more  in  America.  And  thus  the  Queen 
of  England,  the  head  of  the  Protestant  Church,  signed  the  law 
that  declared  the  Protestant  Church  no  longer  was  to  be  ac- 
knowledged as  the  established  Church  in  Ireland. 

Now,  my  friends,  I  ask  you  to  consider  with  me  one  or  two 
serious  thoughts,  with  which  I  shall  conclude.  What  is  taught 
us  by  all  this?  First  of  all,  I  ask  you  to  reflect  upon  the  singu- 
lar historical  fact  that  the  victory  of  Ireland — this  great  victory 
— was  not  the  triumph  of  the  sword.  Ireland  did  not  strike  a- 
blow  to  demolish  the  Protestant  Church  in  Ireland.  She  held 
her  hands  in  peace,  and  the  people  maintained  a  quiet,  modest, 
dignified  silence.  But,  under  that  silence  there  was  a  determi- 
nation to  wipe  away  that  old  and  blood-stained  grievance ; 
even  though  they  were  to  work  for  a  thousand  years,  it  had  to 
be  done.  The  determination  of  principle  was  there.  That 
principle  was  a  divine  one — the  principle  of  Catholic  faith-^- 
coming  from  heaven,  not  from  the  earth.  God  has  said  in 
heaven :  "  The  victory  that  conquers  the  world,  and  shall  al- 


198  Ireland's  Faith,  the  Triumph  of  the  Age. 

ways  conquer  it,  is  faith."  How  dear,  then,  to  us  should  be 
the  preservation  of  that  principle  !  What  strength  it  is  to  every 
man  to  have  some  high  and  glorious  principle  by  which  to  reg- 
ulate his  social  life,  his  civil  life,  and  his  political  life !  What 
more  glorious  record  can  be  put  upon  any  man's  tomb  than 
that,  when  it  is  with  truth  said  :  "  Here  lies  one  that  never  de- 
nied or  played  false  to  his  principles."  Secondly,  my  friends, 
reflect  upon  the  significant  fact  of  which  this  history  of  Ireland 
tells  you  and  me,  namely,  that,  in  order  to  succeed  in  any  enter- 
prise, national  or  otherwise,  the  people  must  be  united.  "  Union 
is  strength."  Where  union  is,  there  is  the  element  of  success  ; 
because  there  is  the  presence  of  might  and  strength.  God  is 
omnipotent — God  is  essentially  One  ;  therefore  He  is  omnipo- 
tent. The  Catholic  Church  has  fought  the  world  for  nearly  two 
thousand  years,  and  she  has  always  come  out  victorious  ;  and 
why?  Because  the  Catholic  Church  is  one — one  in  faith,  one  in 
obedience,  one  in  jurisdiction,  and  one  in  devotion  to  God. 
One,  because  He  who  created  her  prayed  to  the  Father,  and 
said :  "  Oh,  Father,  let  them  be  one,  even  as  Thou  and  I  are 
One."  To  preserve  that  unity,  the  Catholic  Church  has  been 
obliged  to  cut  off  individuals  and  nations.  One  day  a  power- 
erful  king  contradicts  her  teaching;  she  excommunicates  him 
and  tells  him  to  go  his  way — to  find  his  own  way  to  heaven  if 
he  can.  Another  day  it  is  a  whole  nation,  as  in  the  case  of 
England,  that  says:  "We  will  depart  and  leave  you  ;  we  don't 
believe  this  that  you  call  your  doctrine."  She  says  :  "  You  are 
excommunicated.  Go  out  from  me.  You  have  no  communion 
with  me.  Go  and  find  your  own  way  to  your  doom."  To-day 
it  is  Bismarck  telling  a  bishop  that  he  must  not  excommunicate 
a  priest  for  this  or  that  heresy.  A  priest  in  Germany  denies 
the  Catholic  faith  in  a  public  church  ;  and  a  bishop  excommu- 
nicates him — tells  him  to  go  about  his  business.  He  says  :  "  I 
will  not  lay  a  wet  finger  upon  you  ;  but  you  must  go.  I  won't 
keep  you."  Tell  me,  my  friends,  if  I,  here  to-night  (God  be- 
tween us  and  harm  !) — if  I  denied  any  one  of  the  Catholic 
truths ;  if  I  denied  the  Divinity,  or  the  Real  Presence  of  Christ ; 
if  I  denied  that  the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary  was  the  Mother  of 
God  ;  if  I  denied  that  the  Church  of  God,  or  the  Head  of  the 
Church,  was  infallible  ; — wouldn't  you  be  very  greatly  surprised 
to  see  me  upon  the  altar  next  Sunday,  or  in  the  pulpit  preach- 


Ireland's  Faith,  the  Triumph  of  the  Age.  199 

ing?  The  first  thing  you  would  say  would  be  :  "  Oh,  the  poor 
Archbishop  !  he  must  have  lost  his  head  ;  for  here  is  that  fellow 
— that  heretic,  here  again  !  What  is  the  matter  ?  "  Of  course,  if  I 
were  to  speak  thus  here  now — I  would  not  be  two  hours  in  my 
convent  to-night  until  I  would  get  a  letter  from  the  Archbishop 
of  New  York,  saying  to  me :  "  My  friend,  you  are  no  longer  a 
Catholic,  nor  a  teacher  of  Catholic  doctrine.  I  suspend  you. 
Go  your  way,  my  man."  This  is  precisely  what  the  Ger- 
man bishop  did.  What  did  Bismarck  do  ?  He  said  :  "  My 
Lord  Bishop,  you  have  no  business  to  suspend  or  excommuni- 
cate a  priest  without  my  leave  !  "  Bismarck  is  certainly  not  a 
Catholic  ;  nobody  knows  of  what  religion  the  fellow  is.  Now, 
imagine  for  a  moment  to  yourself  Governor  Hoffman  or  Pres- 
ident Grant  writing  to  the  Archbishop  of  New  York,  and  say- 
ing to  him  :  "  My  Lord  Bishop,  I  will  put  you  in  jail  for  sus- 
pending or  excommunicating  Father  Tom  Burke,  because  he 
denies  the  infallibility  of  the  Pope."  That  is  the  state  of  affairs 
now  in  Germany.  That  is  the  sensible  issue  to  which  this 
great  statesman  brings  things.  This  has  been  going  on  for  two 
years.  And  the  Catholic  Church  just  cuts  them  off — the  same 
as  Horace  Greeley  would  lop  off  a  rotten  branch  at  Chappaqua. 
Right  and  left,  off  they  go.  And  why?  Because  all  things 
must  be  sacrificed  in  order  that  the  great  Church  of  the  Living 
God  may  preserve  the  unity  of  her  faith,  and  the  unity  of  her 
doctrine,  and  her  strength.  She  is  one,  therefore  she  is  strong. 
We  are  two  hundred  millions  of  Catholics  all  the  world  over. 
Whenever  a  question  of  faith  arises  touching  the  Catholic  doc- 
trine of  the  Church — that  moment  the  minds  of  all  the  two  hun- 
dred millions,  that  feel,  see,  and  think  after  their  own  fashion 
upon  every  other  subject — upon  that  there  is  but  one  thought 
— and  that  one  thought  the  faith  of  the  Church.  That  is  the 
secret  of  her  strength  and  unity.  So  it  is  with  nations.  Ire- 
land was  divided  on  the  great  question — on  the  great  test  of 
her  nationality.  Ireland  failed.  Ireland  united  on  the  glorious 
question  of  her  religious  freedom  ;  and  Ireland  triumphed  with 
the  magnificent  triumph  which  is  the  wonder  of  our  age. 
What  was  the  secret  that  united  her  ?  It  was  her  Catholic 
faith — the  Catholic  faith  that  told  her  that  Faith  is  the  sub- 
stance of  things  to  be  hoped  for.  Why  did  the  nation — in  the 
deepest  midnight  hour  of  sorrow  and  persecution — why  did  she 


200  Ireland's  Faith,  the  Triumph  of  the  Age. 

never  despair?  Why  does  she  not  despair  to-day?  Because 
she  has  the  faith  that  is  the  substance  of  things  to  be  hoped  for. 
Because,  where  the  true  faith  is — where  the  CathoHc  faith  binds 
the  people  together — there  is  the  breath,  the  living  breath  of 
the  undying  God.  And  until  God  abandons  those  who  are 
faithful  to  Him — which  He  will  never  do — that  nation  may  go 
on  through  centuries  of  suffering  and  sorrow,  but,  eventually, 
the  sun  of  divine  favor  will  burst  upon  her  gloriously — coming 
from  God,  resting  upon  her  faithful  brows — and  will  surround 
her  with  its  light ;  for  God,  who  is  never  outdone  by  His  crea- 
tures in  generosity,  will  remember  her,  will  crown  her  with  all 
honor  and  glory,  and  will  set  yet  upon  the  brows  of  this  native 
land — this  motherland  of  mine — the  crown  of  religious  and 
civil  freedom,  of  honor  and  glory,  which  will  be,  in  the  time  to 
come,  what  the  diadem  of  ancient  Ireland  was  in  ages  past — 
the  wonder  of  the  world,  and  the  glory  of  mankind. 


THE    LIBERATOR. 


[Lecture  delivered  at  the  Academy  of  Music,  New  York,  May  13,  1872.] 

ADIES  AND  Gentlemen:  The  history  of  this  age  of 
ours  tells  us  of  many  men  who  have  used  their 
energies  and  their  powers  for  purposes  of  enslaving 
their  fellow-men — for  purposes  of  injustice  and  perse- 
cution. This  age  of  ours,  however,  has  had  the  grace  to  pro- 
duce one  man  who  received  from  a  gratified  nation  the  proudest 
title  that  ever  adorned  a  man.  He  was  called  the  Liberator  of 
his  country.  I  need  not  mention  his  name.  His  name  is  writ- 
ten upon  the  history  of  the  world,  under  this  grand  title  of  Lib- 
erator. His  name  is  enshrined  in  every  Irish  heart,  and  in  the 
memory  of  every  Irishman,  under  the  glorious  title  of  Libera- 
tor. When  we  hear  that  word,  those  amongst  us  who  are  ad- 
vancing into  the  vale  of  years  remember,  as  he  seems  to  rise 
before  them  at  the  sound  of  the  name  of  Liberator,  the  colossal, 
gigantic  figure,  the  brows  overladen  with  mighty  thought,  the 
Irish  eyes  beaming  with  intelligence  and  with  humor,  the  up- 
lifted arm  emphasizing  every  glorious  maxim  of  religion  and 
of  freedom,  and  at  the  sound  of  the  word  Liberator  we  behold, 
lising  out  of  his  grave  and  standing  before  us,  as  he  once  stood 
on  the  old  soil  and  swayed  the  millions  of  Irishmen,  the  glori- 
ous figure  of  Daniel  O'Connell.  There  is  nothing,  my  friends, 
that  ought  to  be  more  grateful  or  more  instructive  to  every 
high-minded  man  than  to  recall  the  deeds  by  which  a  man  gains 
a  world-deserved  glory.  For  such  a  man  not  only  binds  to  his 
own  brows  the  crown  of  immortal  fame,  but  he  also  leaves, 
for  the  consideration  of  those  who  come  after  him,  the 
glorious  example  of  manliness,  of  integrity,  and  of  virtue. 
These  should  be  the  study  of  every  man  amongst  us,  and  never 
can  we  study  them  more  favorably  than  when  they  are   em- 


202  The  Liberator. 

bodied  in  the  life  and  in  the  actions  of  one  who  dazzled  the 
world  by  the  glory  of  his  genius,  and  who  left  behind  him  in 
the  hearts  of  his  fellow-men  traditions  of  might,  admiration, 
and  of  tenderest  love.  Who,  therefore,  was  this  man  ?  For 
whom  did  he  contend  ?  By  whom  was  he  crowned  with  this 
glorious  title  of  the  Liberator  of  his  country  ?  Oh,  my  friends, 
before  we  enter  upon  his  career,  or  sketch  his  life,  it  is  well  for 
us  to  cast  our  thoughts  back  some  eighty  years,  and  consider 
what  Ireland  was  at  the  close  of  the  last,  or  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury. 

It  seemed,  indeed,  as  if  the  closing  of  that  century  should 
have  been  bright  and  peaceful  and  happy.  It  seemed  as  if  the 
sun  of  Ireland  had  arisen  at  last,  and  that  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury would  have  passed  into  the  roll  of  ages  under  the  full  blaze 
of  the  noon-tide  prosperity  and  happiness  of  Ireland.  In 
1782,  eighteen  years  before  the  final  close  of  the  century,  there 
was  in  Ireland  a  reunion  of  the  grandest  intellects  and  the 
brightest  names  that  perhaps  ever  adorned  the  pages  of  our 
national  history. 

The  walls  of  the  Parliament  House  in  College  Green  resounded 
to  the  glorious  periods  of  Grattan  and  of  Flood,  whilst  the  state- 
ly and  dignified  Charlemont  upheld  the  nation's  honor  in  the 
Irish  House  of  Lords.  They  demanded  of  England  a  full  rec- 
ognition of  Ireland's  rights  and  of  Ireland's  independence  as  a 
nation.  Their  voice  was  heard  but  unheeded  until,  in  a  happy 
moment,  the  vicissitudes  of  the  times  obliged  England  to  permit 
an  organization  of  armed  Irishmen  called  "  The  Volunteers  of 
'82."  The  men  of  Ireland  took  arms  into  their  hands,  and  it  is 
well  that.  Catholics  as  we  are,  we  should  not  forget  that  that 
glorious  movement  originated  amongst  our  Protestant  brethren 
of  the  North  of  Ireland.  The  men  of  Ireland  took  arms  into 
their  hands,  and  when  Grattan  spoke  again  he  spoke  with  a 
hundred  thousand  armed  and  drilled  Irishmen  at  his  back,  and 
England  was  obliged  to  listen  and  to  pay  the  greatest  attention 
to  his  words.  He  demanded  the  charter  of  Ireland's  independ- 
ence and  he  obtained  it,  because  he  spoke  in  the  name  of  an 
organized  and  an  armed  nation.  He  rose  in  the  House  of  Com- 
mons and  he  pronounced  these  words,  "  I  found  my  country  in 
the  dust.  I  raised  her  up,  she  stands  to-day  in  her  queenly  inde- 
pendence, and  nothing  remains  for  me  to  do  but  to  bow  before 


The  Liberator.  203 

that  majestic  image  and  to  say,  *  Esto  Perpetua — *  Be  thou  per- 
petuated in  thy  freedom,  O  Ireland !  '  " 

Fair,  indeed,  and  bright  was  the  mission  :  industry  developed, 
trade  encouraged,  magnificent  buildings,  such  as  the  Four  Courts 
and  the  Custom-House  of  Dublin,  erected ;  a  people  speaking 
with  a  nation's  voice.  Fair  and  bright  was  the  prospect,  only  it 
was  too  bright  to  last.  The  Irish  Parliament  at  length  consent- 
ed to  take  some  steps  for  the  emancipation  of  their  Catholic 
fellow-countrymen,  that  all  the  nation  might  enter  into  the  halls 
of  the  Legislature,  and  that  laws  might  be  made,  not  for  a  class, 
nor  for  a  caste,  but  for  all  men  who  had  the  name  and  the  privi- 
leges of  Irishmen.  This  was  too  bright  to  last.  The  English 
Government  took  thought.  The  following  year  saw  a  strange 
Viceroy  sent  over.  The  following  year  the  insidious  Army  Act 
was  introduced.  The  pressure  and  apprehension  of  war  was 
taken  off  England,  and  the  moment  her  hands  were  free  she 
turned  around  to  rivet  the  chains  once  more  upon  Ireland's  free- 
dom. The  Army  Act  was  passed,  and  the  Irish  Parliament  had 
the  folly,  despite  the  warning  even  of  Grattan  and  of  every 
patriotic  man,  to  let  it  pass;  and  by  that  act  it  was  declared 
illegal  for  Irishmen  to  carry  arms,  and  the  Volunteers  were  dis- 
armed. No  sooner  were  the  arms,  the  guns,  the  artillery  taken 
from  them  ;  no  sooner  were  these  strong  men  deprived  of  these 
arms,  than  England  at  once  began  a  systematic  persecution  of 
the  Irish  people,  with  the  expressed  intention  to  goad  them  into 
rebellion,  and,  thereby,  to  fasten  the  chains  still  more  securely 
upon  them.  One  wrong  followed  another.  In  1794,  Earl  Fitzwil- 
liam  was  made  Lord  Lieutenant  of  Ireland,  and  he  arrived  in 
the  country  in  January.  He  was  the  friend  of  Ireland  and  of 
Ireland's  greatest  son,  the  immortal  Grattan.  As  soon  as  ever 
the  English  Government  discovered  that  this  man  intended  to 
rule  Ireland  justly  he  was  instantly  recalled  ;  and  the  people 
who  greeted  him  with  shouts  of  joy  in  January,  accompanied 
him  with  tearful  eyes,  as  he  took  his  departure  from  them  on 
the  25th  of  March  of  the  same  year.  Then  followed  act  after  act 
of  tyranny  and  oppression.  In  vain  did  Grattan,  Curran,  the 
immortal  Lord  Edward  Fitzgerald,  who  was  then  in  the  Irish 
Parliament,  protest  against  these  cruel  acts,  until,  at  length, 
finding  that  the  Government  was  determined  to  destroy  the 
people,  if  possible,  in  the   year  1779  Grattan  rose  in  the  Irish 


204  The  Liberator. 

Parliament  and  said,  "  I  have  offered  you  measures  for  the  hap- 
piness of  Ireland,  and  you  have  refused  them.  You  propose 
measures  for  the  misery  of  Ireland,  and  you  will  carry  them.  I 
have  no  more  use  nor  business,"  he  said,  "to  remain  in  this 
House  ;  "  and  the  aged  patriot  departed  from  the  Irish  House  of 
Commons,  followed  by  Curran,  Lord  Edward  Fitzgerald, 
and  others,  who  left  with  despair  in  their  minds  and  with  break- 
ing hearts. 

Then  came  the  dawn  of  '98.  Kildare  and  some  of  the  mid- 
land counties  made  a  miserable  and  unsuccessful  attempt  at 
revolution.  Heroic  Wexford  arose.  The  stalwart  men  of  the 
hillsides  of  Wexford  arose  ;  unarmed  as  they  were,  or  armed 
only  with  the  armor  of  their  own  infinite  bravery,  they  stood 
out  for  dreary  months  against  the  united  power  of  England, 
until,  at  length,  the  rebellion,  as  it  is  called,  was  suppressed  in 
the  slaughter  and  in  the  blood  of  the  people.  The  ferocious 
foreign  soldiery  and  yeomanry  were  let  loose  throughout  the 
land.  Tortures  were  inflicted  upon  the  innocent  and  unoffend- 
ing, worse  than  any  that  ever  Cromwell  devised  in  his  worst 
days  for  the  people  of  Ireland  ;  and  '98  closed  upon  a  nation 
trodden  into  the  blood-stained  dust,  and  with  minds  and  hearts 
utterly  prostrate  and  broken  under  the  iron  heel  of  the  oppressor. 
All  this  O'Connell  saw,  and  during  that  year  of  '98  and  '99,  he 
listened,  day  after  day,  and  month  after  month,  as  John  Philpott 
Curran  stood,  alone  in  the  land,  between  the  ferocious,  the 
blood-stained  Norbury  on  the  bench,  and  the  poor  prisoner,  so 
often  innocent,  in  the  dock ;  alone,  with  loud  and  heroic,  though 
fruitless  voice,  vindicating  the  principles  of  eternal  justice  and 
the  purity  of  the  law.  The  heart  of  the  nation  was  broken  in 
'98,  and  nothing  remained  but  for  an  infamous  English  minister 
to  work  his  will  upon  the  people  of  Ireland.  That  man  was 
called  Lord  Castlereagh — who  cut  his  throat.  It  used  to  be  a 
standing  toast  in  the  West  of  Ireland,  even  within  my  own 
recollection — if  two  or  three  friends  met,  they  felt  in  duty  bound 
to  fill  their  glasses  and  propose  :  "  Here's  to  the  strap  that  put 
a  keen  edge  to  the  razor  that  cut  Castlereagh's  throat."  He 
bribed  the  Irish  members  of  Parliament  with  money.  He 
bribed  them  with  titles.  He  practised  the  vilest  arts  of  cor- 
ruption that  could  be  suggested  by  his  own  wicked  mind  and 
corrupted  heart,  and  he  carried,  just  at  the  beginning  of  this 


The  Liberator.  205 

present  nineteenth  century,  a  measure  which  proved  the  ruin 
of  Ireland — viz. :  the  aboHtion  of  the  Parliament,  and  the  Union 
of  the  two  countries  under  one  Legislature.  It  was  in  vain 
that  Grattan  thundered  against  this  iniquity  with  his  heroic 
voice  ;  it  was  in  vain  that  Fitzgerald,  and  Kendal  Bushe,  and 
all  the  other  great  Irishmen  of  the  day  spoke  in  language  which 
is  immortal  for  its  eloquence  and  justice,  in  the  cause  of  their 
country  and  of  their  country's  national  existence.  Everything 
was  borne  down  by  the  flood  of  English  corruption  and  bribery, 
and  this  act  was  passed,  by  which  Ireland  was  deprived  of  the 
power  of  making  her  own  laws,  by  which  a  nation  hostile  to 
her  and  determined  upon  her  commercial  and  national  ruin, 
was  commissioned  to  make  laws  for  Ireland.  An  act  was 
passed  which  has  been  the  father  and  the  apology  of  every 
cruelty  and  every  injustice  that  we  have  suffered  from  that  day 
to  this — the  accursed  act  of  Union,  by  which  Ireland  lost  her 
Parliament. 

Among  the  bribes  that  were  held  out  to  the  Irish  people  to 
get  this  act  passed,  one  was  a  promise  that  the  Catholics 
should  be  emancipated.  No  sooner  was  the  Union  passed 
than  William  Pitt,  the  Prime  Minister  of  England,  be- 
trayed his  faith  and  broke  his  word  with  Ireland,  and 
when  he  had  received  the  gift  of  her  existence  into  his 
hands,  he  laughed  at  us  in  the  face,  and  mocked  us  as 
fools  for  trusting  him.  And  fools  we  were  to  trust  him, 
and  a  fool  is  every  Irishman  on  the  face  of  the  earth  that 
trusts  England  or  England's  Parliament,  or  that  imagines, 
for  a  single  moment,  that  the  English  Government  or  the  Eng- 
lish Parliament  will  ever  give  justice  or  equal  laws  to  Ireland, 
unless  they  are  obliged  or  coerced  by  the  fear  of  the  people. 
If  the  Volunteers  of  '82  had  kept  their  guns,  Pitt  would  have 
kept  his  word. 

And  now,  my  friends,  this  was  the  position  of  Ireland  when 
O'Connell  first  appears  in  the  history  of  our  country.  Born  in 
1775,  he  was  called  to  the  bar  of  Dublin  in  1798,  and  it  was 
only  five  years  before,  that  is  to  say,  in  1793,  that  the  penal 
law  was  relaxed,  and  that  a  highly  educated  Catholic  gentleman 
was  allowed  the  privilege  of  earning  his  bread  as  a  lawyer. 
We  first  find  him  whilst  the  question  of  the  Union  was  being 
agitated.      He  attended  a  meeting  in  the  Corn  Exchange  in 


2o6  The  Liberator. 

Dublin  ;  it  was  composed  exclusively  of  Catholics,  and  mostly 
all  professional  men.  They  came  to  discuss  the  question  of 
Ireland's  existence,  and  to  protest  against  the  Union  ;  and  it 
will  give  you  some  idea  of  how  things  were  carried  on  in  those 
days  when  I  tell  you,  that  no  sooner  was  the  meeting  assembled 
in  the  Corn  Exchange,  than  the  tramp  of  soldiers  was  heard 
outside  the  door,  and  in  swaggered  Major  Sirr,  the  town  major 
of  Dublin,  at  the  head  of  his  troops,  and  marched  them  around 
the  hall,  so  that  they  surrounded  the  meeting,  and  he  then 
commanded  them  to  ground  arms.  Down  went  the  heavy  guns 
of  the  Hanoverian  and  English  soldiers.  "  Now,  gentlemen," 
he  said,  ''  you  may  begin  your  discussion  ;  it  is  all  right — go 
on  ;  "  but  every  man  knew  that  his  very  life  was  at  the  mercy 
of  that  blood-stained  and  unmerciful,  hard-hearted  man  ;  there 
was  no  liberty  of  thought,  much  less  of  speech.  A  man  could 
not  call  his  soul  his  own  in  these  sad  days,  and  it  was  under 
these  circumstances,  with  the  presence  of  the  town-major  and 
his  soldiers,  that  O'Connell,  for  the  first  time  in  his  life,  spoke 
a  word  for  Ireland.  He  tells  us  himself,  that  what  between 
the  intimidation  of  the  troops,  what  between  the  fact  that  that 
was  his  first  effort  at  speaking,  and  being  a  young  man,  he  felt 
as  if  his  heart  would  break  with  anxiety  and  fear  whilst  he  was 
speaking. 

Now,  the  Union  was  passed,  Ireland  was  annihilated,  and 
the  only  hope  for  Ireland,  as  it  was  her  only  hope  for  three 
hundred  long  years  before,  was  the  strength  and  the  power  of 
Ireland's  faith  and  Ireland's  Catholicity,  which  was  still  in  her. 
There  it  was  still,  unconquered  and  unconquerable,  the  only 
element  of  life,  the  only  element  of  courage,  the  only  seedling 
of  national  regeneration  which  was  left  to  us — her  holy  faith, 
which  she  clung  to  in  spite  of  persecution  and  blood  for  three 
hundred  years.  But  this  powerful  element  lay  dormant  in 
Ireland.  A  Catholic  Board,  as  it  was  called,  was  formed  in 
Dublin.  A  number  of  Irishmen  came  together  to  try  and 
agitate  for  Catholic  Emancipation.  In  the  British  House  of 
Commons  in  London,  as  in  the  Irish  House  at  home,  during  its 
existence,  they  had  a  glorious  advocate  in  the  great  Henry 
Grattan.  Year  after  year  he  brought  his  motion,  praying  the 
Legislature  to  strike  off  the  chains  of  the  Irish  Catholics,  and 
year  after  year  he  was  met  with  overwhelming  majorities  against 


The  Liberator.  207 

him,  and  his  bill  and  his  cause  were  laughed  to  scorn  in  the 
British  Parliament. 

In  vain  did  Plunket  take  up  the  glorious  theme.  In  vain  did 
Edmund  Burke — the  immortal  Edmund  Burke — England's 
greatest  philosopher  and  statesman,  and  Ireland's  greatest  son, 
whose  name  shall  live  forever  in  the  annals  of  the  world's  his- 
tory for  every  highest  gift  of  genius  and  of  virtue — in  vain  did 
Edmund  Burke,  and  Fox,  and  all  the  great  English  statesmen 
of  the  time,  advocate  the  claims  of  Irish  Catholics.  They  got 
no  hearing.  There  was  justice  for  every  man,  there  was  con- 
sideration for  every  man,  there  was  respect  for  every  man,  until 
it  was  discovered  that  he  was  an  Irishman  and  a  Catholic,  and 
then  there  was  not  for  him  even  the  courtesy  of  a  hearing,  but 
the  loud  laughter  of  scorn.  They  had  conquered  us,  and  they 
thought  they  could  despise  us.  They  had  conquered  us,  and 
they  imagined  that  because  we  were  conquered  we  were  de- 
graded. The  Catholic  Board,  in  Dublin,  was  afraid  to  raise  its 
voice.  Of  those  who  patronized  it,  some  were  liberal  Protes- 
tants, and  many  glorious  lovers  of  liberty  were  there  amongst 
them  (and  God  forbid  that  I  should  malign  them).  The  great 
mass  of  the  Irish  people,  then  amounting  to  nearly  eight  mil- 
lions of  men,  were  crushed  into  the  earth,  and  were  afraid  to 
speak,  under  the  tyranny  of  a  hostile  government,  and  under 
the  tyranny  of  their  cruel  and  unjust  landlords.  The  Cath- 
olic Board  was  afraid  to  speak.  Grattan's  voice  was  un- 
heard. He  was  refused  a  hearing  in  the  House.  And  now 
the  Almighty  God,  in  His  mercy  to  Ireland,  lifted  up  a  man, 
gigantic  in  form,  gigantic  in  intellect,  heroic  in  courage,  strong 
in  faith,  tender  in  heart,  who  was  destined  to  shake  the  Irish 
race  into  self-assertion  and  energy,  who  was  destined  to  rally 
this  people,  to  lift  them  over  the  ground,  to  put  a  voice  upon 
their  lips,  to  make  their  hearts  throb  again  with  glorious  ex- 
citement, with  high  hope.  O'Connell  rose,  and  rose  alone,  to 
head  the  Irish  people — -with  the  grasp  of  an  athlete,  to  stran- 
gle every  man  that  rose  up  against  his  people.  Alone,  he  rose 
to  lead  a  prostrate  nation  high  up  the  rugged  road  of  liberty, 
until  he  led  them  to  kneel  before  a  free  altar,  and  burst  the 
bonds  that  bound  them.     Alone  had  he  to  do  it. 

In  181 3  he  took  charge  of  the  leading  place  in  the  Cath- 
olic Association.     At  that  time,  mark  the  difficulties  that  he 


2o8  '  The  Liberator. 

had  to  contend  with.  He  had  a  people  afraid  to  speak  ;  he  had 
an  aristocracy  opposed  to  him  to  a  man  ;  he  had  the  great  land- 
ed interest  of  England  and  the  English  people  opposed  to  him 
to  a  man ;  he  had  the  English  Catholics  opposed  to  him  ;  he 
had  the  Irish  titled  Catholics  opposed  to  him  ;  he  had  a  gov- 
ernment that  was  watching  him,  crossing  him  day  after  day  with 
prosecutions,  arresting  him  now  on  this  pretext  and  now  on 
that,  accusing  him  now  of  having  said  this  and  of  having  said 
that :  he  had  men  watching  for  his  life  ;  and  he  had  to  conquer 
a  false  friend,  an  open  enemy,  to  defy  the  Government,  and  to 
defy  the  bench  and  the  bar  ;  he  had  to  take  the  pistol  in  his 
hand,  and,  though  bitterly  his  Catholic  heart  regretted  it,  he 
had  actually  to  commit  a  tremendous  crime  in  the  cause  of 
Ireland.  He  was  prosecuted  for  some  saying  of  his,  together 
with  Richard  Lalor  Shiel.  The  grand  jury  threw  out  the  bills 
— there  was  no  case  against  him.  Finding  that  they  could  not 
entrap  him  into  the  meshes  of  the  law,  which,  with  a  supreme 
genius  and  prudence,  he  was  able  to  evade,  they  sent  a  mur- 
derer upon  his  track,  thinking  that — even  as  of  old,  when  they 
were  unable  to  conquer  O'Neill  by  the  sword,  they  put  poison  in 
his  drink — they  could  conquer  O'Connell  by  setting  a  murderer 
upon  his  track  ;  and  the  whip  of  D'Esterre  was  lifted  to  strike 
the  magnificent  form  of  Ireland's  best  son.  What  could  he  do  ? 
Insulted  over  and  over  again,  that  life  that  was  so  precious  to  Ire- 
land he  freely  risked  for  Ireland.  I  do  not  justify  him.  No, 
nor  does  he  ask  me,  from  his  place  in  heaven,  to  justify  him. 
Even  as  St.  Peter,  for  his  one  denial  of  his  Master,  wept  every 
day  of  his  life,  so  O'Connell,  for  his  one  moment  of  forgetfulness 
of  his  Catholic  duty,  wept  every  day  of  his  life.  Yet,  what  could 
he  do  ?  Young,  brave  as  a  lion,  confident  in  his  strength  and 
dexterity,  he  accepted  the  challenge,  and,  on  a  fine  morning, 
Mr.  D'Esterre, who  threatened  to  flog  O'Connell,  and  who  wanted 
to  fight  him,  took  a  cab,  and  drove  out  to  Lord  Cloncurry's 
place,  about  ten  miles  outside  of  Dublin,  and  there  he  met 
O'Connell.  Now,  apparently,  D'Esterre  was  sure  to  win.  First 
of  all,  he  was  a  small,  slim,  miserable  little  man,  like  an  atten- 
uated herring  that  is  out  of  season.  It  would  require  a  man  to 
be  able  to  shoot  a  rat  at  the  distance  of  half  a  mile  to  be  able 
to  shoot  him  ;  whilst  O'Connell  was  a  finely-formed  and  well- 
developed  mountain  of  a  man.     Firing  at  O'Connell  was  some- 


The  Liberator.  209 

thing  like  firing  at  a  haystack;  you  could  scarcely  miss  him. 
Then,  again,  D'Esterre  was  a  dead  shot,  and  O'Connell  was  con- 
sidered  to  be  a  far  more  formidable  man  with  the  pen  than  with 
the  pistol.  I  have  my  account  of  all  this  from  old  men  who 
were  on  the  ground.  They  said  that  there  was  deliberate  mur- 
der in  D'Esterre's  eye  as  he  took  his  aim.  O'Connell  simply 
stood  there  for  Ireland.  He  could  not  keep  his  hold  on  the 
people,  considering  the  feelings  of  his  time,  unless  he  met  that 
man  and  fought  him.  He  lifted  his  pistol  with  apparent  care- 
lessness, but  he  threw  the  quick  gray  eye  after  it.  Two  reports 
were  heard.  The  whistle  of  a  ball  passed  before  O'Connell's 
eyes,  and  D'Esterre  is  on  the  ground,  and  he  never  got  up  again. 
Major  Macnamara  was  on  the  ground — he  was  a  Protestant 
gentleman  who  had  fought  a  great  many  duels  in  his  time. 
He  came  up  to  O'Connell  with  tears  in  his  eyes,  and  de- 
clared :  "  Dan,  it  is  the  neatest  shot  that  was  ever  made. 
If  ever  I  am  to  meet  my  man,  I  hope,  if  he  strikes  me  at  all, 
he  will  do  it  as  neatly ;  it  is  almost  an  honor  to  be  hit  so 
neatly." 

The  Catholic  Association,  founded  under  O'Connell,  grew 
under  his  genius.  The  Catholic  aristocracy  of  Ireland — the 
Bellews  and  the  Fingals, — when  they  heard  this  man  speak,  were 
shocked  and  frightened.  They  were  afraid  to  speak  to  the  Eng- 
lish people  at  all.  They  were  afraid  to  petition  Parliament. 
Even  John  Keogh  and  the  democratic  portion  of  the  Catholics 
of  Ireland  were  for  maintaining  what  they  called  a  dignified 
silence,  which  means  a  silence  proceeding  from  fear.  Out  came 
O'Connell  as  brave  as  a  lion  ;  he  knew  no  fear.  He  attacked  ; 
he  didn't  petition.  He  attacked  the  men  at  the  head  of  the 
State.  He  called  them  every  vile  name  that  he  could  think  of. 
One  man  was  called  "  a  pig,"  another  man  was  called  "  a  big 
liar,"  another  was  told  to  "  get  out  of  that."  Another  man  was 
called  the  "  bloated  buffoon,"  and  so  on.  And  these  great  Eng- 
lish statesmen,  who  thought  they  could  walk  or  ride  rough-shod 
over  all  Ireland,  found  to  their  amazement  that  there  was  an 
Irishman  who  not  only  was  not  afraid  of  them,  but  who  gave 
them  nicknames  that  stuck  to  them  for  the  rest  of  their  lives. 
When  the  people — the  Catholic  people  of  Ireland — found  that 
somehow  or  other  a  lion  had  got  in  amongst  them — a  lion  ram- 
pant and  roaring  for  his  prey — when  they  found  that  there  was 

14 


210  The  Liberator. 

one  Catholic  man  in  the  land,  speaking  their  own  language, 
glorying  in  identity  of  race  with  them,  it  made  every  man, 
even  to  the  Prince  of  Wales,  who  was  afterwards  George  IV., 
afraid  of  him.  They  plucked  up  courage,  they  raised  their 
heads,  and  they  asked  themselves  "  Is  the  world  coming  to  an 
end?  What  is  going  to  be  done  with  this  man?  "  But  when 
they  found  that  this  man  had  a  genius  and  an  eloquence  that 
nothing  could  withstand,  when  they  found  that  the  cause  of  jus- 
tice and  of  truth  on  this  man's  lips  meant  the  tremendous  cause 
that  would  shake  the  world ;  when  they  found  the  Catholic 
nations,  France,  and  Spain,  and  Austria,  and  Italy  sympathizing 
with  this  man,  admiring  his  genius,  translating  his  speeches  into 
their  languages,  and  proclaiming  him  one  of  the  greatest  men 
of  the  age,  Ireland  began  to  feel  confidence  and  pride  in  O'Con- 
nell. 

Now,  I  say  that  Ireland's  confidence  and  pride  in  O'Connell, 
from  the  year  1810  to  the  year  1829,  that  that  pride  and  confi- 
dence which  our  people  had  in  O'Connell  was  the  salvation  of 
Ireland.  He  roused  the  clergy.  The  priests  were  almost  afraid 
to  speak  as  well  as  the  people.  There  was  not  a  clerical  voice 
to  be  heard  in  the  land.  The  bishops  were  afraid  of  their  lives. 
If  they  spoke  at  all  it  was  with  bated  breath,  as  men  who  are 
only  permitted  to  live,  who  are  winked  at  in  order  that  they 
might  be  tolerated  in  the  land.  He  roused  the  clergy,  he  sent 
them  amongst  their  people  ;  he  commanded  them  to  preach  a 
gospel  second  only  in  its  sacredness  to  the  Gospel  of  our  holy 
religion,  and  that  is  the  gospel  of  Ireland's  glorious  nation- 
ality. And  it  came  to  pass,  that  in  the  year  1813,  George 
Canning,  a  great  English  statesman,  was  glad  to  propose  a 
measure  for  the  emancipation  of  the  Catholics  of  Ireland.  And 
now  comes  O'Connell  again,  in  all  his  glory,  before  us.  Hav- 
ing prepared  his  bill,  the  Catholics  of  Ireland  were  to  be  eman- 
cipated ;  they  were  to  be  allowed  to  enter  all  the  professions ; 
they  were  to  be  allowed  to  enter  Parliament ;  they  were  to  be 
allowed  to  mount  the  judicial  bench  as  judges  of  the  land  ;  they 
were  to  be  allowed  to  legislate  for  themselves  and  for  their  peo- 
ple— all,  all,  upon  one  condition,  and  that  was  that  they  were 
to  allow  the  English  Government  what  was  called  the  power  of 
the  Veto,  which  I  will  explain  to  you.  Whenever  a  Catholic 
priest  was  to  be  made  a  bishop,  his  name  was  to  be  sent  to 


The  Liberator.  2il 

Rome,  and  if  the  Pope  approved  of  him,  then,  instead  of  mak- 
ing him  a  bishop  out  of  hand,  he  was  to  send  back  his  name, 
with  his  nomination;  and  the  moment  the  man  got  his  nomina- 
tion, instead  of  going  to  the  archbishop,  and  getting  him  to 
consecrate  him,  he  was  to  send  the  nomination  to  the  Secretary 
of  State,  and  the  Secretary  of  State  was  to  submit  it  to  the 
council  of  English  lords  and  the  Lord  Chancellor  of  England, 
or  of  Irish  lords  and  the  Lord  Chancellor  of  Ireland.  They  were 
to  examine  this  man,  to  see  whether  he  was  worthy  to  be  a 
bishop — they  were  such  good  judges — they  knew  all  about  it. 
In  all  probability,  if  the  bill  had  passed.  Lord  Norbury — of 
whom  you  have  heard — Lord  Norbury  would  have  been  one 
of  these  lords  examining  a  priest  in  his  theology.  And  if  they 
disapproved  of  the  man — in  other  words,  if  they  found  an  hon- 
est man,  if  they  found  him  a  true  Irishman,  if  they  found  that 
he  had  one  spark  of  love  for  his  country  in  him,  they  were  to 
put  their  veto  upon  him,  and  the  Pope  was  to  have  no  power 
to  make  him  a  bishop.  You  understand  what  it  meant.  They 
wanted  to  exclude  from  the  episcopacy  of  Ireland  such  men  as 
the  immortal  Doyle,  or  the  great  John  MacHale.  They  wanted 
to  make  bishops  of  men  who  would  lie  down  at  their  feet  to  be 
trampled  upon,  and  who  would  tell  the  people  that  there  was 
no  such  word  as  freedom  in  the  Gospel. 

Now,  such  was  the  state  of  affairs  at  the  time,  that  when 
Canning's  bill  was  proposed,  with  this  veto  attached  to  it,  all  the 
English  Catholics  said:  "Oh,  yes,  it  will  do  very  well,"  and  all 
the  Irish  respectable  Catholics,  the  few  Irish  Catholic  lords,  and 
the  few  Irish  Catholic  knights,  were  all  in  favor  of  the  veto. 
"  And  why  not  ?  You  will  be  glad  to  be  emancipated  on  any 
condition."  Some  of  the  Irish  Catholic  bishops  admitted  it, 
and,  worst  of  all,  the  Pope,  who  was  then  a  prisoner  in  France, 
admitted  it.  Napoleon  took  him  a  prisoner,  and  affairs  in 
Rome  were  managed  by  a  high  functionary,  whose  name  was 
Quarantotti ;  and  this  high  prelate,  when  he  got  the  draft  of 
Canning's  bill,  and  read  it,  he,  the  Pope's  representative,  wrote 
to  Dr.  Poynter,  the  Catholic  Bishop  of  London,  and  wrote  to 
the  Irish  bishops,  telling  them  to  accept  the  veto  and  their 
emancipation  with  it.  O'Connell  wavered  for  a  moment,  but, 
his  powerful  intellect  quickly  grasping  the  insidious  danger, 
he  who  had  arisen  against  the  Orangeism  of  Ireland,  the  bigo- 


212  The  Liberator. 

try  of  England,  the  persecuting  power  of  the  Tory  government, 
arose  like  an  angry  giant,  and  told  the  Irish  bishops  and  the 
Irish  people, — aye,  and  told  Rome — that  that  veto  never  should 
be  admitted  into  Ireland.  He  came  exulting  like  a  giant  in  his 
strength.  He  came  and  thundered  at  the  doors  of  the  English 
Parliament  and  said :  "  Emancipation  and  freedom  without 
any  condition — 'We  are  no  longer  slaves !  "  He  said :  "  We 
are  no  longer  beggars.  We  come  demanding  and  insisting 
upon  emancipation,  without  any  condition  whatsoever  to 
bind  it."  Now,  my  friends,  what  gave  O'Connell  this  power? 
I  answer,  that  by  this  time  O'Connell  had  organized  the  Irish 
people  in  their  parishes  ;  he  had  made  them  join  the  Associa- 
tion ;  he  had  fixed  a  tax  of  a  penny  a  month  upon  every 
Catholic  man  in  Ireland,  it  was  not  the  penny  he  was  look- 
ing for,  but  the  man's  name;  he  got  them  all  enrolled  in  the 
Association ;  he  got  the  priests  to  know  all  the  men  who  were 
associated  ;  he  got  the  people  to  know  one  another ;  he  pub- 
lished their  numbers  to  them,  and  told  them  the  secret  of  their 
strength ;  he  had  the  priests  of  Ireland,  the  parish  priests,  the 
curates  and  the  friars, — he  had  them  with  him  to  a  man.  No 
veto  for  them.  And  why  ?  For  many  reasons.  I  am  not  speak- 
ing now  of  the  effect  of  that  legislation,  if  it  had  passed,  upon 
the  Church.  I  am  not  speaking  of  its  effect  on  their  liberties. 
But  what  was  more  natural  than  that  every  honest  priest  in 
Ireland  should  oppose  the  veto,  because  he  must  have  said  to 
himself,  "What  chance  have  I  of  ever  being  a  bishop?"  Can- 
ning, though  a  friend  to  Ireland,  was  told  to  keep  his  Emanci- 
pation Act. 

Thus  the  great  movement  went  on,  the  Irish  people  every 
day  increasing  in  their  numbers  affiliated  to  the  Catholic  Asso- 
ciation, every  day  feeling  their  way  and  feeling  their  strength. 
The  thundering  voice  of  the  mighty  O'Connell  went  through 
the  land.  He  went  here  and  there  through  the  country,  he  sac- 
rificed his  profession  and  all  its  vast  gains,  and  he  devoted  him- 
self to  marshaling  the  people,  until  at  length  things  were 
brought  to  such  a  pass,  that  when  Lord  Wellington,  the  con- 
queror of  Waterloo,  and  the  bitterest  Tory  enemy  that  Ireland 
ever  had — when  Wellington  came  into  power  he  swore  never 
to  do  anything  for  the  Irish  Catholics,  if  he  could  help  it 
Having  a  king  the  basest,  the  vilest,  the  most  polluted  of  men, 


The  Liberator.  213 

Ihe  infamous  George  IV. — having  that  king  at  his  back,  he 
swore  that  he  never  would  grant  anything  to  the  Irish  Cath- 
olics. O'Connell  had  so  marshaled  the  Irish  people  that  the 
man  who  had  conquered  Napoleon  at  Waterloo  was  obliged  to 
acknowledge  that  O'Connell  had  beaten  him,  and  he  went  to 
the  king  and  said  :  "  If  you  don't  emancipate  the  Catholics  with- 
out any  condition — give  them  freedom — you  will  have  a  revolu- 
tion." It  was  not  for  love,  it  was  not  for  justice,  that  this  act 
was  granted.  Never,  never  since  the  day  that  Richard  of  Pem- 
broke set  foot  with  his  Normans  upon  the  soil  of  Ireland,  never 
from  that  hour  to  this  has  England  granted  us  one  iota  of  jus- 
tice except  under  the  influence  of  a  craven  fear. 

The  year  '28  came.  Wellington  came  into  power,  and  the 
Catholic  Association,  like  men  who  had  now  learned  to  speak, 
passed  a  decree  that  no  man  that  accepted  office  under  Lord 
Wellington  should  be  returned  to  Parliament  for  any  borough 
or  county  in  Ireland.  There  was  a  member  elected  for  the 
County  of  Clare,  a  very  good  man,  a  very  estimable,  agreeable 
man,  and  his  father  was  really  a  great  man  and  a  true  patriot. 
This  man's  name  was  Vesey  Fitzgerald,  and  he  accepted  office 
under  the  Duke  of  Wellington's  government.  This  obliged  him 
to  go  back  to  Clare  and  to  ask  the  people  to  re-elect  him.  Now, 
at  that  time  the  people  were  altogether  in  the  landlords'  hands. 
When  the  day  of  election  came  they  were  called  together. 
They  were  not  even  offered  a  breakfast  in  the  morning  before 
they  left,  but  the  bailiff  and  the  land-steward  and  the  landlord 
drove  them  in  as  you  would  drive  a  flock  of  sheep  to  give  their 
votes ;  so  that  one  landlord  could  say  to  another,  "  I  have  so 
many  votes,  how  many  have  you  ?  "  The  people  had  no  voice 
at  all  except  to  register  their  votes  as  they  were  told.  Vesey 
Fitzgerald  was  a  popular  man,  and  he  came  back  to  Clare  for  his 
election,  when,  like  a  thunder-clap,  came  the  announcement  from 
O'Connell,  "  I  am  going  to  stand  for  Clare."  The  British  Gov- 
ernment were  silent  with  amazement  and  astonishment  at  the 
audacity  of  the  man.  The  whole  world  stood  confused  at  the 
greatness  of  his  courage.  He  went  down  to  Clare,  the  priests 
came  around  him,  he  raised  the  standard  "  Freedom  from  land- 
lord intimidation.  Every  man  has  his  own  conscience  and  his 
own  rights,"  and  by  a  sweeping  majority  of  the  honest  and 
the  manly  Irishmen   of  the  County  of   Clare  O'Connell  was 


214  The  Liberator. 

returned  to  Parliament.  Whilst  the  Parliament  were  discuss- 
ing the  terms  of  emancipation,  whilst  they  were  asking  each 
other,  Could  they  allow  the  Catholics  the  privilege  of  returning 
members  to  Parliament  of  their  own  religion  ?  whilst  they  were 
trying  to  devise  how  they  would  neutralize  it,  how  they  could 
keep  them  out  in  spite  of  the  law,  this  big,  huge  man  walked  in, 
returned  by  the  County  of  Clare,  and  advanced  to  the  table  to 
take  the  oath  of  allegiance.  The  clerk  of  the  House  of  Commons 
rose  up  and  put  the  book  in  his  hands  to  swear  him.  "What 
am  I  to  swear  to  ?  "  "  To  swear  this,"  he  says  :  "  The  sacrifice 
of  the  Mass,  the  veneration  of  the  blessed  Virgin  Mary  and  the 
Saints  is  damnable  idolatry."  "  In  the  name  of  two  hundred 
millions,  in  the  name  of  eight  millions  of  the  Irish  race,  in  the 
name  of  antiquity,  in  the  name  of  history',  in  the  name  of  the 
high  God  of  heaven,  the  God  of  truth,  I  reject  the  oath,  and  say 
that  it  is  a  damnable  oath."  He  found  a  veto  with  a  vengeance 
lying  before  him.  And  as  he  would  not  have  the  Act  of 
Emancipation,  with  the  veto  tacked  on  to  it,  so  he  would  not 
sit  down  in  the  House  of  Parliament  with  an  infernal  lie  on  his 
lips. 

Three  times  was  the  act  of  Catholic  Emancipation  put  before 
the  English  House  of  Commons,  and  sorely  against  their  will — 
because  the  Prime  Minister  and  his  associates  in  the  Govern- 
ment told  them,  with  trembling  lips:  "You  must  do  it.  The 
Irish  are  prepared  for  revolution  ;  you  must  do  it.  They  will 
sever  their  connection  altogether ;  they  will  break  up  the  em- 
pire !  " — they  passed  it.  For  three  days  they  held  out  against 
it,  vomiting  out  their  bigotry:  "No,  no!  rather  die  than  do 
it!"  "Ah!  but  you  must  do  it!"  was  the  answer.  "The 
Irish  people  have  found  a  leader  who  has  united  them  as  one 
•  man,  and  now  O'Connell  represents  Ireland,  and  O'Connell 
stands  at  the  door  and  tells  you  you  must  do  it!  "  The  bill 
passed  the  Lords  and  Commons,  and  Wellington  took  it,  and, 
on  bended  knee,  he  offered  it  to  George  IV.  The  King  refused 
to  read  it.  "  You  must  read  it !  "  He  reads  it ;  he  utterly 
refuses  to  sign  it.  "  You  must  do  it;  it  can't  be  helped."  He 
took  the  pen  in  his  hand,  and  he  burst  into  tears.  He  did  not 
weep  when  he  declared  his  wife  an  adulteress  and  broke  her 
heart.  He  did  not  weep  at  the  wreck  and  ruin  of  every 
form  of  innocence  that  ever  came   before  him,  and  that  was 


The  Liberator.  215 

polluted  and  destroyed  and  blighted  by  his  unholy  touch.     He 
did  not  weep  when  he  left  Richard  Sheridan,  his  own  friend,  to 
die  of  starvation  in  a  garret   in  London.     He  had  no  heart  to 
weep;  he  had  no  heart  to  feel,  the  bloated  voluptuary!     He 
was  never  known  to  weep  in  his  life,  only  when  he  was  signing 
the  Catholic  Emancipation,  and  then  he  wept  in  devilish  spite. 
The  act  was  passed  and  declared  a  law  on  the  13th  of  April, 
1829  ;  and,  to  use  the  eloquent  words  of  my  brother  in  religion, 
Lacordaire,  "  Eight  millions  of  Irishmen  sat  down  in  the  British 
House  of  Commons   in  the  person  of  O'Connell."     Yet  mark 
the  spite,  the  diabolical  spite,  of  the  Government.     After  the 
Act  of  Emancipation  was  passed,  they  would  not  let  him  take 
his  seat  until  he  had  to  go  back  again  to  Clare  to  be  re-elected. 
After  the  Act  of  Emancipation  was  passed  they  made  a  number 
of  Catholic  barristers  ;  the    king's    counsel  gave   them  certain 
privileges  of  the  bar ;  and  while  young  men  and  mere  boys  re- 
ceived this  privilege,  the  head  of  the  bar,  the  head  of  the  Cath- 
olics, the  head  of  intellectual  Europe,  O'Connell,  was  denied  it. 
They  thought  they  would  vent  their  spleen  upon  him  and  keep 
him  in  the  background,  as  if  he  could  be  left  in  the  background 
whom  Almighty  God  had  brought  to  the  front. 

And  now,  my  friends,  the  great  crowning  act  of  his  life  being 
thus  acccomplished,  he  did  not  rest  one  moment,  but  he  turned 
his  thoughts  to  the  second  great  object  for  which  he  lived,  and, 
indeed,  it  was  scarcely  the  second,  but  the  first — namely,  the 
repeal  of  the  accursed  Union.  Some  people  in  Ireland,  and 
elsewhere,  think  that  the  repeal  of  the  Union  was  an  after- 
thought of  O'Connell ;  that  he  did  not  intend  it  in  the  begin- 
ning; that  he  never  thought  of  it  until  he  had  emancipated  the 
Catholics.  It  is  not  so.  Twenty  years  before  Catholic  emanci- 
pation was  passed,  O'Connell  declared  that  he  would  labor  to 
the  last  hour  of  his  life  for  the  one  purpose  of  repealing  that 
accursed  Union.  Even  in  Grattan's  time — and  Grattan  lived 
till  1820 — even  in  Grattan's  time  the  Catholics  of  Ireland  did 
petition  for  the  repeal  of  the  Union,  and  Grattan  told  them, 
"  If  ever  you  Catholics  of  Ireland  rise  up  in  your  united 
strength,  you  will  get  the  repeal  of  the  Union,  or  anything  else 
that  England  has  it  in  her  power  to  bestow  upon  you."  From 
1829  until  1839,  for  a  period  of  ten  years,  O'Connell  stood  in 
the  British  Parliament,  exposed  to  all  the  ribaldry  of  the  oppo- 


2i6  The  Liberator, 

sition,  all  the  contempt  that  the  bigotry  of  English  Protestant- 
ism could  bring  to  bear  upon  him.  Every  man  in  that  House 
hated  him  as  the  devil  is  said  to  hate  holy  water.  But  he  stuck 
to  his  old  courage,  and  to  his  old  trick  of  giving  names.  Stan- 
ley, the  old  Earl  of  Derby,  stood  up  and  opposed  him,  and  he 
turned  on  him,  and  he  said  :  "  Sit  down,  Scorpion  Stanley !  " 
and  until  Derby  went  to  his  grave,  he  was  known  by  the  name 
of  "  Scorpion  Stanley."  Disraeli  attacked  him,  and  O'Connell 
turned  round  upon  him,  and  said:  "  Behold  the  lineal  descend- 
ant of  the  impenitent  thief."  Sugden,  the  Chancellor  of  Ireland, 
deprived  him  of  the  magistracy,  and  attacked  him,  and  O'Con- 
nell called  him  the  man  with  the  ugly  name ;  and  whenever  he 
spoke  of  Sugden  aftewards,  in  all  his  speeches,  he  always  said : 
"  And  as  the  man  with  the  ugly  name  observed  on  such  and 
such  an  occasion  " — and  so,  by  undaunted  courage,  by  the  maj- 
esty of  his  towering  intellect,  by  his  tremendous  argumenta- 
tive power,  and  by  the  sweeping  of  his  eloquence,  he  crushed 
the  opposition  of  the  English  House  of  Commons,  and,  as  he 
opened  the  doors  by  the  force  of  his  genius,  he  held  his  ground 
there  by  the  same  means,  until  in  a  few  years  the  fate  of  the 
great  parties  of  England  was  in  the  hands  of  O'Connell. 
O'Connell  and  his  tail,  as  it  was  called.  O'Connell  command- 
ed such  influence  that  on  any  great  occasion  affecting  the  ex- 
istence of  the  Government,  the  Premier  of  England,  almost  on 
his  knees,  came  to  beg  O'Connell  to  have  pity  on  the  govern- 
ment, and  not  to  turn  them  out  of  office.  And  now  began 
to  take  form  and  consistency  the  Repeal  agitation.  He  who 
had  united  Ireland  as  one  man  in  the  sacred  cause  of  religion, 
united  them  again  in  the  sacred  cause  of  nationality.  From 
end  to  end  of  the  land  he  traveled,  and  wherever  he  appeared 
the  enthusiastic  heart  and  the  manhood  of  Ireland  gathered 
around  him.  Oh,  how  grandly  does  he  rise  before  my  imagi- 
nation now !  Oh,  how  magnificent  is  the  figure  that  now 
looms  up  in  the  halls  of  my  memory  as  I  look  back  to  that  glo- 
rious year  of  1843 — the  repeal  year  of  Ireland  ! 

He  stands  within  the  honored  walls  of  Dundalk,  and  three 
hundred  thousand  Irishmen  are  around  him.  Not  a  sound  of  dis- 
cord, not  a  word  of  quarreling,  not  a  single  jarring  voice,  not  a 
drunken  man  nor  a  disorderly  one,  among  the  three  hundred 
thousand  of  Ireland's  stalwart  citizens.     He  stands  upon  the 


The  Liberator.  217 

Hill  of  Tara.  He  stands  by  the  Croppy's  grave,  and  he  has 
around  him  upon  the  slopes  of  that  hill  two  hundred  and  fifty 
thousand  men — a  quarter  of  a  million  of  Irishmen.  Oh  !  who 
was  able  thus  to  unite  Irishmen?  Oh!  who  was  able  thus  to 
inspire  them  with  one  thought,  with  one  high  and  lofty  and 
burning  aspiration  ?  Oh !  who  was  able  to  lift  up  a  people 
whom  he  had  found  so  fallen,  though  not  degraded,  that  they 
could  scarcely  speak  the  words  of  freedom,  or  realize  its  thought 
in  their  minds  ?  It  was  the  mighty  genius — the  grand  and 
magnificent  mind  of  Ireland's  greatest  son,  Daniel  O'Connell. 
The  government  became  afraid,  and  well  they  might  be.  Oh ! 
for  the  shining  arms  of  the  Volunteers.  Oh  !  if  on  that  day  of 
Tara ;  if  on  that  day  when  the  soldiers  filled  the  road  to  Clon- 
tarf;  if  on  that  day  Ireland  was  armed,  where,  on  the  face  of 
the  earth,  would  the  army  of  oppressors  have  been  ?  This  army 
of  freemen  would  have  swept  them  from  their  path  in  their 
might  and  in  their  glory.  O  Ireland  !  thou  indeed  wast  un- 
armed, and  the  brave  and  heroic  man,  who  said  with  so  much 
truth,  that  his  highest  glory  would  be  to  draw  the  sword  for  his 
native  isle,  was  obliged  to  preach  to  the  people  conciliation  and 
peace  and  submission. 

The  meeting  at  Clontarf  was  dispersed,  and  I  may  say,  with 
truth,  that  the  dream  of  the  Repeal  of  the  Union,  for  a  time,  was 
dissolved.  A  few  days  after  found  O'Connell  in  prison,  where, 
for  months,  he  languished,  his  health  and  his  heart  broken  for 
Ireland,  until,  at  length,  the  iniquitous  decree,  the  blasphemous 
judgment,  was  reversed,  even  by  the  English  House  of  Lords, 
and  O'Connell,  in  September,  1844,  came  forth  from  a  prison  a 
free  man,  but  he  never  recovered  that  blow — never.  It  was  fol- 
lowed by  dissension  in  the  councils:  brave  and  generous  hearts 
to  be  sure  they  were,  yet  young  and  warm-blooded  ;  they  were 
for  drawing  the  sword,  whilst  they  had  no  sword  to  draw. 
Ireland  unarmed  to  rise  in  rebellion !  Why,  on  that  day  of 
Clontarf  there  were  twenty-eight  thousand  soldiers  in  and 
around  Dublin  ready  to  pour  their  murderous  fire  upon  the 
people.  There  was  division  in  the  councils,  and  the  glorious 
dream  of  the  emancipated  nation  floated  away  for  a  time. 
Then  came  the  hand  of  God  upon  the  people.  Oh !  when  I 
remember  the  fearful  scenes  that  the  aged  father  of  his  country 
saw  before  he  died,  I  am  at  a  loss  to  describe  them.     There 


2i8  The  Liberator. 

came  a  day  when  the  news  spread  from  lip  to  lip :  '''  There  is 
famine  in  the  land,  and  we  must  all  die."  Eight  millions  of 
people  in  that  terrible  year  of  1846,  in  that  awful  autumn  that 
came  upon  us,  when  the  people  cried  for  bread,  and  there  was 
none  to  break  it  to  them.  The  strong  man  lay  down  and  died. 
The  tender  maiden  and  the  poor  and  aged  matron  of  Ireland 
lay  down  and  died  ;  they  were  found  by  the  roadside  ;  they 
were  found  unburied  ;  they  were  found  in  their  shallow  graves, 
scarcely  buried  ;  they  were  found  crawling  to  the  chapel  door 
that  they  might  breathe  out  their  souls  in  one  act  of  faith  and 
love  to  Jesus  Christ.  And  thus  did  the  angel  of  death  spread 
his  wings  over  the  land,  and  the  Liberator,  the  Emancipator,  the 
father  of  Ireland  was  doomed  to  see  his  people  perish,  and  he 
had  not  the  means  to  save  them.  O'Connell's  heart  broke  in 
his  bosom. 

A  broken-hearted  man,  in  January,  1847,  arose  from  his  bed ; 
he  crawled  to  London  ;  with  tottering  steps,  the  aged  man,  the 
wreck  of  all  that  was  once  glorious,  appeared  before  the  aston- 
ished eyes  of  Parliament.  The  voice  that  used  to  fill  the  land 
with  the  thunder  of  his  eloquence,  was  lowered  to  the  merest 
whisper— the  language  of  a  broken  heart.  He  arose  and  pic- 
tured before  these  men  the  agony  of  Ireland,  and,  with  stream- 
ing eyes,  he  implored  the  mercy  of  England  upon  a  dying  people, 
and  a  subsidy  from  the  Parliament  to  save  the  people.  That 
subsidy  was  denied  him,  and  Ireland  was  told  that  she  might 
die  !  That  subsidy  was  denied  him.  England  closed  her  hand, 
and  she  told  the  heart-broken  father  of  his  country  that  he 
might  go  and  seek  some  genial  clime,  and  there  die  ;  but  that 
there  was  no  mercy  for  his  countrymen.  O'Connell  set  out  for 
Rome.  The  Irish  people  started  for  America.  O'Connell  is 
in  heaven  to-night,  I  believe  in  my  heart  and  soul,  and  I  be- 
lieve, also,  in  my  heart  and  soul,  that  if  anything  on  earth  could 
brighten  the  joys  of  heaven,  his  joy  would  be  brightened  to 
see  the  glory,  and  the  increasing  strength,  and  the  manhood  of 
Ireland  as  it  exists  to-day  in  America.  With  the  instinct  of 
Catholicity  he  turned  to  Rome,  journeyed  by  slow  stages,  and 
on  the  15th  of  May,  1847,  he  breathed  his  soul  to  God,  having 
received  all  the  Sacraments  of  the  Church,  and  with  the  names 
of  Jesus  Christ  and  Mary  upon  his  lips,  he  died  in  Genoa,  in 
the  north  of  Italy.     His  last  words  were :  "  When  I  am  dead, 


The  Liberator.  219 

take  out  my  heart  and  send  it  to  Rome  ;  let  my  body  be  brought 
back  to  mingle  with  the  dust  of  Ireland."  The  doctors  who 
attended  him  could  not  make  out  what  disease  was  upon  him. 
The  first  men  in  England,  Ireland,  France,  and  Italy,  came  and 
studied  his  case.  They  could  not  make  out  what  sickness  or 
what  infirmity  was  his.  They  were  never  called  before  to 
attend  a  man  who  was  dying  of  a  broken  heart.  O'Connell's 
heart  was  broken — the  heart  that  was  sent  to  Rome,  the  heart 
that  is  enshrined  in  the  church  of  St.  Agnes  in  Rome  to-day, 
was  broken  for  love  of  Ireland  ! 

Now,  what  was  the  genius  and  character  of  this  man  ?  What 
was  the  secret  of  his  strength  ?  I  answer  the  question  by  say- 
ing, that  O'Connell  was  all  that  history  tells  us  to-day,  and  all 
that  history  shall  tell  the  nations  in  a  thousand  years  ;  O'Con- 
nell was  all  that,  because  of  the  faith  and  Catholicity  that 
was  in  him.  He  was  Catholic  of  the  Catholics ;  he  was  Irish 
of  the  Irish ;  and,  consequently,  the  instincts  of  Ireland  and 
the  heart  of  Catholic  Ireland  sprang  to  him,  so  that  he  made 
Catholic  Ireland  as  if  it  had  but  one  heart,  and  one  thought, 
and  one  mind.  Over  all  his  human  efforts,  over  all  his  tre- 
mendous exertions  in  the  cause  of  liberty,  there  was  ever  shin- 
ing the  light  of  divine  faith,  and  he  knew  that  in  doing  battle 
for  Ireland,  he  was  battling  for  God  and  for  God's  Church. 

What  made  him  refuse  the  veto  ?  It  would  never  affect  him ; 
it  would  only  have  affected  the  Church  ;  it  would  only  have 
affected  the  priesthood  and  episcopacy  of  Ireland.  What  made 
him  refuse  that  bill  of  Canning?  It  was  because  his  Catholic 
instincts,  his  Catholic  mind  and  heart,  told  him  that  the  State 
has  no  business  under  heaven  to  interfere  in  the  regulation  or 
in  the  government  of  the  Church.  He  gave  to  the  Irish  people 
not  only  the  voice  that  pleaded  for  their  freedom,  the  magnifi- 
cent life  that  was  devoted  to  their  service,  but  he  gave  them 
something  far  higher  and  far  greater  than  this.  He  gave  them 
the  bright  example  of  a  pious  and  sincere  Catholic  man.  He 
showed  Ireland,  and  he  showed  the  world,  that  the  highest 
genius  can  be  exalted  still  more  when  it  is  consecrated  to  the 
sacred  cause  of  the  Church  and  of  holy  religion.  He  taught 
the  youth  of  Ireland  the  lesson  that  they  have  learned  so  well 
from  him  and  from  their  fathers,  that  the  secret  of  Ireland's 
strength,  and  of  Ireland's  ultimate  glory,  and  freedom,  and  na- 


220  The  Liberator. 

tionality,  lies  in  Ireland's  adherence  to  her  glorious  old  faith. 
He  taught  the  youth  of  Ireland  that  that  man  alone  is  sure  to 
conquer  every  enemy  in  this  world,  who  has  learned  to  conquer 
his  own  passions  and  himself.  He  contributed  largely,  among 
other  things,  to  make  a  priest  of  me  ;  for  amongst  the  tenderest 
recollections  of  my  youth,  and  among  the  things  that  made 
the  deepest  impression  upon  me  as  a  boy,  was  to  stand  in  the 
chapel  in  Galway,  and  to  see  the  great  Catholic,  the  man  that 
shook  the  world,  the  man  that  every  man  who  crossed  his  path 
was  afraid  of — to  see  that  great  man  come  to  the  eight  o'clock 
mass  in  the  morning  and  kneel  there  amongst  us,  receiving  the 
Holy  Communion — to  watch  him  absorbed  in  prayer  before  his 
God — to  read,  almost,  the  grand  thoughts  that  were,  passing 
through  that  powerful  mind — and  to  see  him  renewing,  again 
and  again,  before  Jesus  Christ,  the  vows  that  bound  him  to  his 
religion  and  to  his  country. 

This,  then,  was  the  great  principle  of  his  life.  This  was  the 
secret  of  his  genius.  This  was  the  inspiration  that  produced 
his  success,  and  well  did  the  Irish  people  correspond  with  him. 
Whatever  he  told  them  to  avoid,  they  avoided  ;  whatever  he 
told  them  to  do,  they  did  ;  and  if  God  had  only  left  him — if 
God  had  only  left  a  united  council  after  him — if  God,  in  His  in- 
finite wisdom,  had  only  averted  the  terrible  stroke  that  pros- 
trated Ireland  and  broke  O'Connell's  heart — the  glory  that  we 
still  look  forward  to  might  be  ours  to-day.  And,  although  he 
is  dead  and  gone,  his  genius,  his  soul,  his  heart,  his  hope,  still 
lives  in  the  breast  of  every  true  son  of  Ireland.  You  and  I 
look  forward,  as  to  our  brightest  human  hope,  as  to  our  highest 
hope  after  the  hope  of  heaven,  to  behold  Ireland,  as  we  so  often 
pray  and  wish  that  she  might  be,  great,  glorious,  and  free.  Great, 
her  history  tells  us,  in  the  past  she  has  been.  Glorious,  O'Con- 
nell  made  her  in  his  glorious  victory  of  Emancipation.  And 
free — ah  !  there  is  a  God  of  Justice  in  heaven.  There  is  a  God 
that  treasures  up  the  fidelity  and  the  sufferings  of  a  nation. 
There  is  a  God  that  accepts  a  people's  sacrifice,  and  sooner  or 
later  crowns  it ;  and  unto  that  God  do  I  look,  with  the  same 
confidence  that  I  look  for  my  own  salvation — to  Thee,  O  God  ! 
this  night — to  send  down  the  crown  and  the  reward  of  freedom 
to  my  glorious  country.  And  when  that  freedom  comes  we 
will  know  how  to  use  it ;  we  will  respect  our  neighbors'  rights, 


The  Liberator.  221 

not  trample  upon  them  ;  we  will  respect  our  neighbors'  prop- 
erty, and  not  plunder  them  ;  we  will  never  raise  our  hands  in 
an  effort  to  deprive  any  people  on  the  earth  of  the  sacred 
boon  which  we  have  sought  for  so  long  in  vain — the  sacred 
boon  of  national  freedom  ;  we  will  know  how  to  use  it 
because  we  are  Catholics,  and  the  Catholic  Church  alone 
teaches  a  man  how  to  preserve,  how  to  defend,  and  how  to 
use  his  freedom. 


THE  VOLUNTEERS  OF  '82. 


fLecture  delivered  in  the  Academy  of  Music,  New  York,  on  Thursday  evening, 
October  17th,  1872,  in  aid  of  the  Catholic  Protectory — the  girls'  portion  of  vi^hich 
had  been  burned  down  a  short  time  previously.] 

ADIES  AND  Gentlemen:  Before  I  proceed  to  the 
subject  of  my  lecture,  which  is  one  of  the  most  glori- 
ous in  the  history  of  Ireland — namely,  the  "  Volunteer 
Movement  of  1782  " — circumstances  oblige  me  to  make 
a  few  preliminary  remarks.  I  have  known  in  Ireland  and  out 
of  Ireland,  many  Englishmen ;  I  have  esteemed  them  ;  and 
I  have  never  known  yet  an  Englishman  who  lived  for  any  length 
of  time  in  Ireland  without  becoming  a  lover  of  the  country  and 
of  its  people.  Their  proverbial  love  for  Ireland  was  cast  in 
their  faces,  in  olden  time,  as  a  reproach.  It  was  said  of  the 
English  settlers  that  they  were  "  more  Irish  than  the  Irish  them- 
selves." Now,  an  English  gentleman  has  come  amongst  us, 
great  in  name,  great  in  learning,  and  also  professing  a  love  of 
our  Irish  nation  and  our  Irish  people.  But  there  is  an  old  prov- 
erb that  says :  "  No  man  can  tell  where  the  shoe  pinches  so 
well  as  the  man  that  wears  it."  I  would  not  mind  or  pay  much 
attention  to  an  old  bachelor's  description  of  the  joys  of  matri- 
mony, nor  would  I  pay  much  heed  to  the  description  of  the  sor- 
rows of  a  man  who  had  lost  his  wife,  as  described  to  me  by  a 
man  who  never  had  a  wife.  And  so,  in  like  manner,  when  an 
Englishman  comes  to  describe  the  sorrows  and  miseries  of  Ire- 
land, or  when  he  comes  to  impute  them  to  their  causes,  the 
least  that  can  be  said  is,  that  he  must  look  upon  this  question 
from  the  outside  ;  whilst  a  man  of  Irish  blood,  of  Irish  name,  and 
of  Irish  birth,  such  as  I  am,  looks  upon  them,  and  is  able  to 
say :  "  My  fathers  before  me  were  the  sufferers,  and  I  myself 
have  beheld  the  remnants  of  their  sorrow."     With  the  best  inten- 


The  Volunteers  of  '82.  223 

tions  possible,  a  public  lecturer  may  sometimes  be  a  little  mis- 
taken, or  he  may  be  reported  badly,  or  his  words  may  convey  a 
meaning  which,  perhaps,  they  were  not  intended  to  convey.  I 
read,  for  instance,  this  morning,  that  this  learned  and,  no  doubt, 
honorable  man,  speaking  of  the  "  Golden  Age  "  of  Ireland,  said 
that  we  Irish  were  accustomed  to  look  upon  the  time  that  went 
before  the  English  invasion  as  the  "  Golden  Age  "  of  Ireland  ;  and 
then  he  is  reported  to  have  gone  on  to  say :  "  And  yet,  for  the 
two  centuries  that  preceded  the  English  invasion,  all  was  con- 
fusion, all  was  bloodshed  in  Ireland."  It  is  perfectly  true  ;  but 
the  "  Golden  Age  "  of  Ireland  is  not  precisely  the  two  centuries 
that  went  before  the  English  invasion.  Irish  history  is  divided 
into  three  great  periods,  from  the  days  that  our  fathers  embraced 
Christianity,  when  St.  Patrick  preached  to  them  the  Catholic 
faith,  early  in  the  fifth  century,  and  Ireland  embraced  it.  For 
three  hundred  years  after  Patrick's  preaching,  Ireland  enjoyed  a 
reign  of  peace  and  of  sanctity  which  made  her  the  envy  and  the 
admiration  of  the  world  ;  and  she  was  called  by  the  surrounding 
nations,"  The  Island  home  of  Saints  and  of  Scholars."  Peace  was 
upon  her  hills  and  in  her  valleys.  Wise  Brehon  laws  governed 
her.  Saints  peopled  her  monasteries  and  convents  ;  and  stu- 
dents, in  thousands,  from  every  clime,  came  to  Ireland  to  light 
at  her  pure  blaze  of  knowledge  the  lamp  of  every  art  and  of  every 
highest  science.  This  is  the  evidence  of  history  ;  and  no  man  can 
contradict  it.  But,  at  the  close  of  the  eighth  century,  the 
Danes  invaded  Ireland.  They  swept  around  her  coasts,  and 
poured  army  after  army  of  invasion  in  upon  her.  For  three  hun- 
dred long  years,  Ireland  had  to  sustain  that  terrific  Danish  war, 
in  defense  of  her  religion  and  of  her  freedom.  She  fought ;  she 
conquered  ;  but  the  hydra  of  invasion  arose  again  and  again,  in 
the  deadly  struggle ;  and,  for  the  nation,  it  seemed  to  be  an  un- 
ending, unceasing  task.  An  army  was  destroyed  to-day,  only 
to  yield  place  to  another  army  of  invasion  to-morrow.  What 
was  the  consequence  ?  The  peace  of  Ireland  was  lost ;  the  mo- 
rality of  the  people  was  shattered  and  disturbed  by  these  three 
hundred  years  of  incessant  war.  Convents  and  monasteries  were 
destroyed,  churches  were  pillaged  and  burned ;  for  the  men  who 
invaded  Ireland  were  pagans,  who  came  to  lay  the  religion  of 
their  pagan  gods  upon  the  souls  of  the  Irish  people.  What 
wonder  if,  when  Ireland  came  forth  from  that  Danish  war,  after 


224  ^/i!^   Volunteers  of  '82. 

driving  her  invaders  from  her  soil — what  wonder  if  the  laws  were 
disregarded,  if  society  was  shaken  to  its  base,  if  the  religion  of 
the  people  was  greatly  injured  and  their  morality  greatly  influ- 
enced for  the  worse  by  so  many  centuries  of  incessant  war? 

When,  therefore,  the  historian  or  lecturer  speaks  of  the  time 
preceding  the  English  invasion  as  the  "  Golden  Age  "  of  Ireland, 
let  him  go  back  to  the  days  before  the  Danes  invaded  us.  No 
Irishman  pretends  to  look  upon  the  three  hundred  years  of 
Danish  warfare  as  the  "  Golden  Age  ;  "  for  truly,  it  was  an  age 
of  blood.  The  confusion  that  arose  in  Ireland  was  terrible. 
When  the  Danish  invaders  were,  at  length,  overthrown  by  the 
gallant  king  who  was  slain  upon  the  field  of  Clontarf,  the  coun- 
try was  divided,  confusion  reigned  in  every  direction ;  and  her 
people  scarcely  yet  breathed  after  the  terrific  struggle  of  three 
hundred  years.  Yet,  in  the  brief  period  of  sixty  years  that 
elapsed  from  the  expulsion  of  the  Danes,  before  the  landing  of 
the  Anglo-Normans,  we  find  the  Irish  bishops  assembled,  restor- 
ing essential  and  salutary  laws  to  the  Church.  We  find  St. 
Malachi,  one  of  the  greatest  men  of  his  day.  Primate  of  the  See 
of  Armagh.  On  the  Archiepiscopal  throne  of  Dublin,  the  English 
invading  tyrant  found  an  Irish  prince,  heart  and  hand  with  his 
people,  who  was  ready  to  shed  his  blood  for  his  native  land ; 
and  that  man  was  the  great  St.  Laurence  O'Toole. 

It  has  been  asserted  also,  that  the  Danes  remained  in  Ireland. 
It  is  true  that  they  founded  the  cities  of  Waterford,  Wexford, 
and  Dublin.  The  Danes  remained  there ;  but,  how  did  they  re- 
main there?  They  conformed  to  the  manners  and  customs  of 
the  Irish  people  ;  they  submitted  to  the  Irish  laws  ;  they  adopted 
the  Catholic  religion,  and  became  good  and  fervent  Christians. 
On  these  conditions  they  were  permitted  to  remain  in  Ireland. 
It  is  all  nonsense  to  say  that  they  remained  by  force.  What 
was  easier  for  the  victor  of  Clontarf — when  he  had  driven  their 
pagan  fellow-warriors  into  the  sea — what  was  easier  than  for 
him  to  turn  the  force  of  the  Irish  arms  against  them,  and  drive 
them  also  into  the  sea  that  lay  before  him  ?  No  ;  the  Danes  re- 
mained in  Ireland  because  they  became  Irish  ;  aye,  "  more  Irish 
than  the  Irish  themselves."  What  were  the  men  whose  brave 
hearts  so  loved  Ireland  that  in  her  cause  they  forgot  all  pru- 
dence and  all  care  for  their  lives  ?  Who  were  the  men  of  '98  ? 
They  were  the  fighting  men  of  Wexford  and  of  Wicklow;  they 


The  Volunteers  of  '82.  225 

were  the  men  of  Danish  blood  and  name,  the  Roches  and  the 
Furlongs  ;  but  they  loved  Ireland  as  well,  if  not  more,  than  our 
fathers  did. 

It  has  been  asserted,  also,  that — such  was  the  confusion,  and 
such  the  disruption  of  society — "  there  was  one  man  above 
all  others  necessary ;  and  he  was  the  policeman."  Well, 
now,  the  policeman  is  a  very  ornamental,  and,  sometimes, 
though  perhaps  rarely,  a  very  useful  member  of  society.  And, 
according  to  the  statement  as  reported,  the  Pope  selected  a 
policeman,  and  sent  him  to  Ireland  ;  and  Henry  II.  of  England 
was  the  Pope's  policeman.  Well,  my  friends,  let  us  first  see 
what  sort  of  a  policeman  he  was,  or  was  likely  to  make.  Henry 
came  of  a  family  so  wicked,  that  it  was  the  current  belief  in  Eu- 
rope that  they  were  derived  from  the  devil.  St.  Bernard  does 
not  hesitate  to  say  of  the  house  of  Plantagenet,  to  which  Henry 
II.  belonged — "  They  came  from  the  devil,  and  they  will  go  to. 
the  devil."  This  man,  who  is  put  forth  as  "the  Pope's  police- 
man," was  just  after  slaughtering  St.  Thomas  d.  Becket,  Arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury,  at  the  steps  of  the  altar.  Thomas  of 
Canterbury  stood  up,  bravely  and  manfully,  with  English  pluck 
and  English  determination,  for  the  liberty  of  the  Church,  and 
for  the  liberty  of  the  people.  And  the  tyrant  king,  this  Pope's, 
policeman,  said,  stamping  his  feet  and  tearing  his  hair,  "  Will 
no  man  amongst  you,"  (and,  mind  you,  his  knights  were  stand- 
ing around  him,)  "will  no  man  have  the  courage  to  rid  me  of 
that  priest !  "  Three  knights  came  straight  from  the  king,  and 
at  his  command  slaughtered  this  English  saint — this  true  Eng- 
lishman— for  Thomas  i.  Becket  was  not  only  a  saint,  but  he  was 
a  true  Englishman,  as  Laurence  O'Toole  was  a  saint,  and  the 
heart's  blood  of  an  Irishman.  At  the  altar  they  found  the 
saint ;  and,  at  the  foot  of  the  altar,  with  their  swords,  they 
hacked  his  head  and  spattered  his  blood  upon  the  very  altar. 
That  blood  was  red  upon  the  hands  of  the  English  tyrant. 
And  is  that  the  man,  I  ask  you,  that  the  Pope,  of  all  others, 
had  chosen  to  send  to  Ireland  to  restore  order?  Oh!  but 
men  will  say,  "  The  Pope  did  it  ;  there  is  the  document  to 
prove  it;  the  Bull  of  Adrian  IV."  Well,  now,  my  friends, 
listen  to  me  for  a  moment.  If  a  sheriffs  officer  came  into  your 
house  to  turn  you  out  on  the  street,  would  not  the  first  question 
you  would  put  to  him  be,  "  Sir,  show  me  your  warrant."     And» 

15 


226  The  Volunteers  of  '82. 

if  he  said,  "  I  have  no  warrant,"  the  next  thing  you  would  do 
would  be  to  kick  him  out.  Henry  II.  came  to  Ireland — men 
say  to-day  that  he  came  upon  the  Pope's  authority — with  the 
Pope's  Bull  in  his  pocket.  If  he  did  why  did  he  not  show  it 
when  he  came  to  Ireland  ?  If  he  had  that  document,  he  kept 
it  a  profound  secret.  If  he  had  it  in  his  pocket,  he  kept  it  in 
his  pocket ;  and  no  man  ever  saw  it  or  heard  of  it.  There  was 
only  one  man  in  Ireland,  on  that  day  when  the  English  invaded 
us — there  was  only  one  man  in  Ireland  that  had  a  mind  and 
heart  equal  to  the  occasion ;  and  that  man  was  the  sainted 
Archbishop  of  Dublin,  Laurence  O'Toole.  He  was  the  only 
man  in  Ireland  that  was  able  to  rally  the  nation.  He  succeeded 
in  bringing  sixty  thousand  Irish  soldiers  before  the  walls  of 
Dublin.  Henry  II.  was  afraid  of  him  ;  and  so  well  he  might  be. 
He  was  so  much  afraid  of  him,  that  he  left  a  special  order  that, 
when  St.  Laurence  should  come  to  England,  he  was  not  to  be 
let  go  back  to  Ireland  any  more.  Now,  if  Henry  had  the 
Pope's  brief  or  rescript,  why,  in  all  the  world,  did  he  not  take 
it  to  the  Archbishop  of  Dublin,  and  say  to  him :  "  There  is  the 
Pope's  handwriting ;  there  is  his  seal ;  there  is  his  signature." 
If  he  had  done  this  at  that  moment  there  would  not  be  another 
word  said ;  he  would  have  run  no  risk ;  the  saint  would  have 
never  moved  against  the  Pope ;  and  Henry  would  have  para- 
lyzed his  greatest  and  most  terrible  enemy.  But  no  ;  he  never 
said  a  word  at  all  about  it ;  he  never  showed  it  to  a  human  be- 
ing. St.  Laurence  died  without  ever  knowing  of  the  existence 
of  such  a  document.  Henry  came  to  Ireland,  but  he  had  no 
warrant ;  and  the  very  man,  who,  if  Irishmen  had  been  united, 
would  have  succeeded  in  kicking  him  out,  did  not  see  it.  When 
did  Henry  produce  this  famous  document  or  Bull,  which  he  said 
he  got  from  the  Pope  ?  He  waited  till  Pope  Adrian  was  in  his 
grave;  the  only  man  that  could  contradict  him.  There  was  no 
record,  no  copy  of  it  at  Rome.  He  produced  it,  then  ;  but  it 
was  easy  for  him  to  do  so.  How  easily  they  could  manufacture 
a  document  and  sign  a  man's  name  to  it.  He  waited  till  Adrian 
was  years  in  his  grave  before  he  produced  it.  And  I  say — with- 
out venturing  absolutely  to  deny  the  existence  of  such  a  docu- 
ment— I  say,  as  an  Irishman  and  as  a  priest ;  as  one  who  has 
studied  a  little  history — I  don't  believe  one  word  of  it ;  but  I 
do  believe  it  was  a  thumping  English  lie,  from  beginning  to  end. 


The  Volunteers  of  '82.  22/ 

It  has  also  been  asserted  that  our  people  lived  in  great 
misery ;  that  they  burrowed  in  the  earth  like  rabbits.  That  is 
true.  Remember,  three  hundred  years  of  war  passed  over  the 
land.  Remember,  that  it  was  a  war  of  devastation  ;  that  all 
the  great  buildings  in  the  land  were  nearly  utterly  destroyed  by 
the  Danes.  Convents  and  monasteries  that  were  the  homes  of 
hundreds  and  thousands  of  monks,  were  leveled  to  the  ground. 
It  is  true  that  the  Irish  were  in  misery.  It  has  been  asserted 
that  there  is  no  evidence  of  their  ancient  grandeur  or  civiliza- 
tion, "  except  a  few  Cyclopean  churches,  and  a  few  Round 
Towers."  I  would  only  ask  for  one  ;  if  there  was  only  one 
ruin  in  Ireland,  of  church  or  Round  Tower,  I  could  trace  that 
ruin  back  to  the  first  day  of  Ireland's  Christianity;  and  I  lay 
my  hand  upon  that  one  evidence,  and  say :  "  Wherever  this 
was  raised,  there  was  a  civilized  people  that  knew  the  high  art 
of  architecture."  What  nonsense  to  say,  "  there  were  only  a 
few  Round  Towers."  Surely,  they  could  not  have  built  even 
one  if  they  didn't  know  how.  If  they  were  ignorant  savages 
they  would  not  have  been  able  to  build  anything  of  the  kind. 
But,  if  they  were  "  burrowing  in  the  earth,"  how  were  their 
English  neighbors  off?  We  have  ancient  evidence,  going  back 
nearly  to  Patrick's  time,  that  the  Hill  of  Tara  was  covered  with 
fair  and  magnificent,  though,  perhaps,  rude  buildings.  On  the 
southern  slopes  of  the  hill,  catching  the  meridian  glory  of  the 
sun,  you  had  the  Queen's  Palace.  Crowning  the  summit,  you 
had  the  great  Hall  of  Banqueting ;  within  the  enclosure  was 
the  palace  of  King  Cormac.  Four  magnificent  roads  led  down 
the  hillside  to  the  four  provinces  of  Ireland,  because  Tara  was 
the  centre  and  the  seat  of  dominion.  About  two  or  three 
hundred  years  later,  when  St.  Augustine  came  to  preach  the 
gospel  to  the  barbarous,  pagan  Saxons  in  England,  how  did  he 
find  them?  We  have  one  little  record  of  history  that  tells  us. 
We  are  told  that  the  king — one  of  the  kings  of  the  Saxon 
Heptarchy — was  sitting  in  his  dining-hall ;  and  one  of  the  lords, 
or  attendants,  or  priests,  said  to  him  :  "  Your  Majesty,  life  is 
short.  Man's  life  in  this  world  is  like  the  bird  that  comes  in  at 
one  end  of  this  hall  and  goes  out  at  the  other."  Why,  were 
there  no  walls  ?  Apparently  there  were  not.  Surely  it  was  a 
strange  habitation  or  house  if  it  had  no  walls  ;  for,  even  if  it 
was  a  frame  house,  a  bird  could  not  come  in  at  one  end  of  the 


228  The  Volunteers  of  '82. 

dining-room  and  go  out  at  the  other.  All  these  things  sound 
beautifully  until  we  come  to  put  on  our  spectacles  and  look  at 
them.  It  is  true  that  the  Irish,  after  their  three  hundred 
years  of  war,  were  disorganized  and  disheartened,  and  that  they 
burrowed  in  the  earth  like  rabbits.  Ah !  to  the  eternal  disgrace 
of  England,  where  has  the  Irishman,  in  his  native  land  to-day, 
a  better  house  than  he  had  then  ?  What  kind  of  houses  did 
they  leave  our  people  ?  Little  mud  cabins,  so  low  that  you 
could  reach  the  roof  with  your  hand,  scarce  fit  to  '*  burrow  a 
rabbit."  For  century  after  century,  the  people  that  owned  the 
land — the  people  that  were  the  aboriginal  lords  of  the  land  and 
soil — were  robbed,  persecuted,  and  confiscated  in  property  and 
in  money  ;  hunted  like  wolves  in  their  own  land  ;  until,  to  this 
day,  the  Irish  peasant  has  scarcely  a  much  better  house.  I 
have  seen,  in  my  own  day,  the  cabin  of  which  the  English  his- 
torian tells  us.  And  whose  fault  is  it  that  our  people  are  in 
that  position  ? 

We  are  told,  moreover — at  least,  it  is  reported  in  the  papers — 
that,  "  for  nearly  five  hundred  years,  England  had  not  more 
than  about  fifteen  hundred  men  in  Ireland,"  and  that  they  were 
able  to  keep  down  the  "wild  Irish"  with  fifteen  hundred  men. 
There  are  some  things  that  sound  so  comical  that  all  you  have 
to  do  is  to  hear  them.  When  Hugh  O'Neill  was  at  the  Yellow 
Ford,  and  the  English  Field-Marshal  was  advancing  against 
him,  was  it  fifteen  hundred  men  he  had  ?  And  if  it  was  fifteen 
hundred,  how  comes  it  that  the  Yellow  Ford,  on  that  day,  was 
choked  and  filled  up  with  the  bodies  of  Saxon  soldiers.  Our 
history  tells  us  that  Queen  Elizabeth  had  twenty  thousand 
men  in  Ireland,  and  that  she  had  work  enough  for  them  all. 
Ah  !  she  had,  this  sweet  English  queen  !  She  found  work  for 
them  all ;  there  was  Catholic  blood  enough  in  the  land  to  em- 
ploy twenty  thousand  butchers  to  shed  it.  Moreover,  we  are 
told  that  the  Catholics  of  Ireland,  at  the  time  of  America's 
glorious  revolution,  were  all  opposed  to  America's  effort  to 
achieve  her  independence ;  and  that  the  Protestants  of  Ireland 
were  all  helping  America.  Well,  listen  to  this  one  fact.  The 
King  of  England  demanded  four  thousand  men — Irishmen — to 
go  out  and  fight  against  America.  The  Irish  Parliament  gave 
him  the  four  thousand  men ;  and  there  was  not  a  single  Cath- 
olic in  that  Parliament.    No  ;  they  were  all  Protestants.    When 


The  Volunteers  of  '82.  229 

these  men  returned,  covered  with  wounds,  and  began  to  tell  in 
Ireland  what  kind  of  treatment  they  got  from  Washington  and 
his  people,  they  were  hailed  by  the  Catholic  people  of  Ireland 
as  the  very  apostles  of  liberty.  Amongst  them  there  were  men 
that  went  out  in  that  four  thousand  ;  but  don't  imagine  that 
they  went  out  to  enforce  the  slavery  of  Ireland  upon  the  Amer- 
ican people.  Lord  Edward  Fitzgerald  was  one  of  the  four 
thousand.  Was  he  ever  an  enemy  of  the  people  ?  No  !  he 
died  for  Ireland  and  for  her  cause.  When  these  four  thousand 
men  were  called  for  by  England,  we  may  readily  believe  that 
the  majority  of  them  were  Protestants,  because  the  English 
were  not  fools  enough  to  be  putting  arms  in  Catholic  hands, 
as  we  shall  see  in  the  course  of  our  lecture.  When  they  came 
to  this  country,  who  gave  them  the  warmest  reception?  It  was 
the  Catholics  of  North  Carolina.  It  was  Catholic  America  that 
met  them  foot  to  foot  and  drove  them  back,  until  Burgoyne, 
the  famous  English  general,  had  to  go  down  on  his  knees  and 
give  up  his  sword  to  General  Gates,  the  Lieutenant  of  the  im- 
mortal and  imperishable  George  Washington. 

Out  of  that  very  American  war — the  uprising  of  a  people  in 
a  cause  the  most  sacred,  after  that  of  religion — the  cause  of 
their  outraged  rights,  their  trampled  liberties — out  of  that 
American  war  arose  the  most  magnificent  incident  in  the  re- 
markable history  of  Ireland.  It  is  the  subject  of  this  evening's 
lecture. 

My  friends,  one  word,  indeed,  is  reported  in  this  morning's 
papers,  which  tells  a  sad  and  bitter  truth.  It  is  that  "  the  real 
source  of  England's  power  in  Ireland  has  always  been  the  divis- 
ion and  disunion  of  the  Irish  people."  There  is  no  doubt 
about  it — it  is  as  true  as  Gospel.  Never,  during  these  centu- 
ries, never  did  the  Irish  people  unite  :  I  don't  know  why.  The 
poet,  himself,  is  at  a  loss  to  assign  a  reason. 

"  'Twas  fate,  they'll  say,  a  wayward  fate, 
Your  web  of  discord  wove  ; 
And  while  your  tyrants  joined  in  hate, 
You  never  joined  in  love." 

No  ;  the  Irish  people  were  not  even  allowed  to  gain  the 
secret  of  union.  From  the  day  the  Saxon  set  his  foot  upon 
Irish  soil,  his  first  idea,  his  first  study,  was  to  keep  the  Irish 
people  always  disunited.     The  consequence  was,  they  began  by 


230  The  Volunteers  of  '82. 

getting  some  of  the  Irish  chieftains,  and  giving  them  English 
titles ;  giving  them  English  patents  of  nobility ; — confirming 
them  in  certain  English  rights.  On  the  other  hand,  all  the 
powerful  nobles  who  went  down  among  the  Irish  people,  who 
assumed  all  their  forms,  gained  the  secret,  and  became,  as  I 
have  said,  "  more  Irish  than  the  Irish  themselves."  We  find 
that,  as  early  as  1494 — about  the  time  America  was  discovered 
— England  was  making  laws  declaring  no  Englishman  coming 
to  Ireland  was  to  take  an  Irish  name,  or  learn  the  language, 
or  intermarry  with  an  Irishwoman.  They  could  not  live  in  a 
place  where  the  Irish  lived,  but  drew  a  pale  around  their  pos- 
sessions, intrenching  themselves  in  certain  counties,  and  in  cer- 
tain cities  in  Ireland.  We  find  a  law  made,  as  early  as  the  pe- 
riod in  question,  commanding  the  English  to  build  a  double 
ditch,  six  feet  high,  between  them  and  the  Irish  portion  of  the 
country,  and,  at  the  peril  of  their  lives,  not  to  go  outside  that 
ditch.  To  keep  the  natives  divided  seemed  to  be  the  policy 
of  England,  from  the  first  day  up  to  this  hour.  It  must  have 
been  a  very  difficult  policy,  because,  from  the  evidence  of  his- 
tory, it  seemed  that  they  were  ever  anxious  to  join  hands. 
The  Irish  had  appeared  very  often,  in  many  periods  of  their 
history,  to  say  to  the  English:  "Although  you  have  come  as 
enemies,  since  you  are  here,  now  stay,  in  the  name  of  God,  as 
friends :  the  country  is  large  enough  for  us  all."  But  no  ;  the 
English  laws  didn't  permit  it  at  all.  The  English  Lord  Deputy 
(as  the  Lord  Lieutenant  was  called  in  those  days)  was  con- 
stantly striving  to  keep  his  people  from  the  Irish ;  teaching 
them  to  hate  the  Irish  ;  teaching  them  in  all  things  to  abomi- 
nate and  detest  the  original  people  of  the  country.  And  yet, 
whenever  an  Englishman  escaped  from  the  Pale,  and  got  in 
amongst  the  Irish,  in  a  few  years  he  became  the  greatest  rebel 
in  the  country. 

Then,  in  the  reign  of  Queen  Elizabeth,  among  the  many  other 
salutary  laws  that  that  good  lady  made  for  Ireland,  she  made  a 
law  that  no  cattle  or  produce  were  to  be  exported  from  the 
land.  Ireland,  at  that  time,  was  prosperous;  moreover,  was 
able  to  export  a  large  quantity  of  cereals  and  of  cattle.  It 
was  a  source  of  comfort  to  the  people,  and  a  source  of  revenue. 
But  the  "good  Queen  Bess  "  couldn't  bear  to  see  that ;  so  she 
made  and  passed  this  law,  that  there  was  to  be  no  more  ex- 


The  Volmiteers  of  '82.  231 

portation  from  Ireland ;  and  she  condenr.ned  the  people  at 
once  to  a  life  of  inactiviiy  and  of  misery,  before  she  let  loose 
her  terrible  army  upon  them  for  their  extermination. 

The  Irish,  thus  turned  aside  from  agricultural  pursuits,  be- 
cause they  had  no  vent  for  their  agricultural  productions,  gave 
their  attention,  with  their  genius  and  their  nimble  fingers,  to  man- 
ufactures— to  the  manufacture,  especially,  of  woolens  ;  and  soon 
Irish  poplins,  Irish  laces,  Irish  woolen  cloth,  were  well  known 
in  all  the  markets  of  Europe,  and  commanded  large  prices. 
Yet,  we  read  that,  after  the  treaty  of  Limerick,  William  of  Or- 
ange, breaking  every  compact  that  he  made  with  the  Irish  peo- 
ple, actually  laid  such  a  tax  upon  the  Irish  woolen  trade,  that 
he  completely  destroyed  it,  and  reduced  all  the  manufacturers 
and  all  the  tradesmen  of  Ireland  to  beggary  and  ruin. 

But  the  question  does  not  deal  so  much  with  individual  acts 
of  any  tyrannical  prince  as  with  the  great  parliamentary  ques- 
tion. We  read  that,  from  the  first  days  of  the  English  settle- 
ment in  Ireland,  they  were  accustomed,  from  time  to  time,  to 
call  what  was  called  the  "  Council  of  the  Nation ;  "  that  is  to 
say,  the  great  English  Lords,  who  came  over  and  settled  within 
the  Pale,  on  their  large  possessions,  were  called  into  council,  to 
make  laws  and  devise  certain  regulations  for  the  people.  Thus, 
in  the  reign  of  King  John,  these  councils  were  held ;  in  the 
reign  of  the  Edwards  these  councils  were  held  ;  and  so  on, 
until  the  first  great  Parliament  of  the  whole  Irish  nation  was 
called,  in  the  year  16 12.  But  you  must  know  that,  before  a 
Parliament  of  the  whole  nation  was  called,  there  was  a  "  Parlia- 
ment of  the  Pale."  Now,  in  the  time  of  Henry  VII.,  the  Eng- 
lish possessed  in  Ireland  only  four  counties  ; — the  counties  of 
Dublin,  Louth,  Kildare,  and  Meath.  These  held  their  own 
Parliaments.  What  kind  of  Parliaments  were  they?  Year 
after  year  they  came  together  only  to  pass  laws  against  their 
Irish  fellow-citizens  ;  only  to  execute  every  wicked  and  brutal 
mandate  that  they  received  from  England ;  only  to  perpetuate 
divisions  and  divide  the  heart  of  Ireland  more  and  more.  They 
were  not  only  tyrannical  at  home,  these  Parliaments,  but  they 
were  also  rebellious  against  the  English  monarch  and  Parlia- 
ment. My  friends,  we  might  as  well  tell  the  truth  ;  loyalty  does 
not  seem  to  be  a  very  prominent  virtue  among  them.  For  in- 
stance, when  Henry  VII.  was  declared  king  in  England,  two 


232  The  Volunteers  of  '82. 

impostors  arose  to  dispute  his  crown — Simnel  and  Warbeck. 
The  Anglo-Irish  Parliament  took  up  both  of  them.  Simnel 
was  crowned  king  in  Ireland,  in  Christ  Church,  in  Dublin. 
Then  they  sent  him  to  England,  and  some  soldiers  with  him  ; 
and,  after  fighting  a  battle,  he  was  taken  prisoner ;  and  do  you 
know  what  the  king  did  with  him?  He  made  him  a  scullion 
in  his  kitchen.  Scarcely  was  the  pretender  Simnel  promoted 
to  the  kitchen,  when  another  pretender  arose,  who  said  he  was 
the  youngest  son  of  Edward  IV.,  who  was  supposed  to  have 
been  slain  in  the  Tower.  His  name  was  Perkin  Warbeck. 
The  Irish  Parliament — that  is  to  say,  the  Parliament  of  the  En- 
glish people  in  Ireland — took  him  up ;  and  they  avowed  their 
allegiance  to  him. 

King  Henry  VII.  got  angry ;  and  he  sent  over  to  Ireland  a 
gentleman,  Sir  Edward  Poyning.  This  man  came  to  discover 
what  was  the  cause  of  the  agitation  in  the  English  portion  of 
Ireland.  It  is  all  very  well  to  talk  about  the  savagery  of  the 
Irish ;  it  is  all  very  well  to  say  that,  amongst  them,  there  was 
nothing  but  violence  going  on.  Now,  here  is  what  the  English 
Commissioner  and  Lord  Lieutenant  of  Ireland  says  :  when  he 
came,  he  says  that  he  found  the  whole  land  was  full  of  murders, 
robberies,  rapes,  and  other  manifold  extortions  and  oppressions. 
By  whom  were  they  committed?  By  the  barons,  the  English 
barons,  and  settlers  in  the  Pale.  Therefore,  he  came  to  put  an 
end  to  that  state  of  things.  Secondly,  he  tells  them  that  they 
should  build  a  double  ditch,  six  feet  high,  between  themselves 
and  the  Irish.  Considering  the  state  of  affairs  within  the  Pale, 
I  think  that  the  Irishmen  that  were  outside  were  likely  to  gain 
a  great  deal  more  in  morality,  in  virtue,  and  in  religion  by  the 
building  of  the  ditch  than  the  English  did.  The  building  of 
that  great  dyke,  that  passed  from  the  Anna  Liffey  on  to  the 
base  of  the  mountains  of  Kildare,  on  the  one  side  ;  and,  on  the 
other  side,  passed  up  near  the  town  of  Trim  in  east  Meath — 
embracing  the  two  counties  of  Meath  and  Kildare — the  building 
of  that  dyke  to  keep  out  the  Irish,  reminds  me  of  a  story  told 
of  a  poor  man  down  in  my  own  province,  who  was  building  a 
wall  around  a  field,  about  an  acre  or  an  acre  and  a  half  of  noth- 
ing but  limestone,  where  there  wasn't  a  single  blade  of  grass. 
A  gentleman  who  was  passing  said  to  him :  "  What  on  earth 
are  you  doing  that  for  ? — is  it  to   keep  the  cattle  in?"     "No, 


The  Volunteers  of  '82.  233 

your  honor,"  replied  the  man,  "  but  to  keep  the  crathers  out,  for 
fear  they  may  have  the  misfortune  to  get  in." 

The  third  law  that  Poyning  made  was  the  most  important  of 
all.  It  was  to  this  effect :  that  no  Parliament  in  Ireland  was  to 
have  any  right  to  make  laws,  unless  they  first  submitted  these 
laws  to  England.  They  had  no  right  to  assemble  in  Parliament 
without  the  Lord  Lieutenant's  permission.  If  any  man  had  a 
measure  to  propose  in  Parliament,  it  had  to  be  sent  over  to 
England  to  get  the  permission  of  the  English  king,  before  it 
could  be  laid  before  the  Parliament.  This  law  completely  sub- 
jugated Ireland  to  England.  The  Parliament,  of  course,  passed 
whatever  laws  they  were  commanded  to  pass.  And  so  it  went 
on — one  law  worse  than  another  ;  the  very  vilest  ordinances 
of  Queen  Elizabeth  were  recognized  in  the  form  of  law  by  the 
Irish  Parliament.  When  Charles  I.  encroached  upon  the  liber- 
ty of  the  people,  his  best  man,  Wentworth,  found  his  help  in 
the  Irish  Parliament  ;  and  England,  in  the  days  of  Charles  II., 
took  the  money  of  Ireland — the  money  that  was  to  pay  the  in- 
terest of  the  national  debt — and  put  it  into  the  pocket  of  the 
profligate  king ;  and  the  Irish  Parliament  had  not  a  word  to 
say.  And  why?  Because  they  didn't  represent  the  Irish  people 
at  all. 

In  the  year  1753 — the  year  that  George  II.  died — Ireland  was 
practically  governed  by  a  vagabond,  the  Protestant  Bishop  of 
Armagh — his  name  was  Hugh  Bolter.  He  was  Bishop  of  Bris- 
tol, in  England,  and  had  been  promoted  to  be  Primate  in  Ire- 
land. Do  you  know  what  that  ruffian  did  ?  He  brought  a  law 
before  the  Irish  Parliament  disfranchising  every  Catholic  in  Ire- 
land, and  passed  the  law  without  the  slightest  murmur.  There 
was  not  a  man  in  that  House  that  spoke  or  offered  an  argument 
for  the  Catholic  Irish,  who  were  thus  deprived  of  all  voice  in 
their  national  affairs. 

At  length  the  divided  nation  united  upon  a  most  strange 
question.  They  ran  short  of  copper  money  in  Ireland.  There 
were  no  pence,  or  halfpence,  or  farthings ;  and  the  people  be- 
gan to  complain ;  they  had  not  the  currency  wherewith  to  buy 
and  sell.  So  the  King  of  England,  George  II.,  under  his  own 
hand,  gave  command  to  an  Englishman,  a  coiner,  named  Wood, 
to  coin  one  hundred  and  eighty  thousand  pounds  in  copper  coin 
After  the  Englishman  had  taken  the  contract,  mark  how  he  ful 


234  The  Volunteers  of  '82. 

filled  it.  He  bought  six  thousand  pounds  worth  of  old  brass, 
and  he  coined  one  hundred  and  eighty  thousand  pounds  worth 
of  money  for  Ireland  out  of  the  six  thousand  pounds  worth  of 
old  brass.  There  is  an  old  name  for  a  bad  penny  or  a  bad  half- 
penny in  Ireland  :  they  call  it  a  "  tinker."  Well,  the  "  tinkers  " 
arrived  in  Ireland — the  English  "  tinkers  " — Wood's  "  tinkers  ;  " 
and  when  the  Irish  people  looked  at  them — tossed  them  up 
and  caught  them  again — they  got  mad  ;  and  every  man  in  Ire- 
land, gentle  and  simple,  united,  for  the  first  time  in  our  history, 
in  resisting  a  few  bad  half-pence.  It  is  a  simple,  and,  indeed,  a 
droll  fact.  The  people  that  never  united  on  the  question  of 
their  national  independence,  were  united,  like  one  man,  in  resist- 
ing a  few  bad  half-pence  that  were  sent  over  from  England, 
This  was  the. first  stroke  at  England.  It  was  nearly  two  hundred 
years  ago,  in  the  days  of  Dean  Swift — and  the  dean  hated  bad 
money.  The  moment  that  the  Irish  were  united,  and  said  to  Eng- 
land, "  Take  back  that  money  ;  we  won't  have  it ;  "  that  moment 
the  English  king  was  obliged  to  take  back  his  own  commission  ; 
and  Mr.  Wood  got  back  his  bad  money.  It  was  a  small  thing, 
but  it  taught  the  Irish  people  a  lesson — a  glorious  lesson — a 
lesson  that  every  true-hearted  Irishman  should  preach,  the  glo- 
rious lesson  of  union  and  concord  amongst  all  classes  of  Irish- 
men. It  was  very  unwise  of  England  to  afford  us  such  an 
opportunity  of  uniting.  So  long  as  it  was  a  question  of  race 
she  could  keep  us  apart ;  as  long  as  it  was  a  question  of  nation- 
ality she  could  keep  us  divided  ;  but  no  man — be  he  Protestant, 
or  Methodist,  or  Quaker,  or  Presbyterian,  or  Catholic — no  man 
likes  to  have  a  bad  penny  thrust  upon  him  when  he  ought  to 
have  a  good  one.  The  moment  the  Irish  found  that,  by  uniting 
upon  any  question  they  could  gain  whatever  they  wanted,  they 
discovered  the  grand  secret  of  national  success. 

Events  followed  each  other  quickly.  There  was,  at  this  time, 
an  Irishman  named  Molyneaux,  who  wrote  a  book  called, 
"  The  Case  of  Ireland  Stated,"  which  proved  so  clearly  the  claims 
of  Ireland  to  national  freedom,  that  the  book  was  burned  in 
London  by  the  common  hangman.  The  eventful  year  of  1775 
came.  America  was  up  in  arms.  England  dealt  with  her  the 
way  she  dealt  with  Ireland.  She  was  accustomed  to  impose 
taxes  upon  us  without  asking  our  leave.  She  laid  an  embargo 
upon  our  commerce  ;  she  destroyed  our  trade  ;  and  she  thought 


The  Volunteers  of  '82.  235 

she  had  nothing  to  do  but  just  do  the  same  thing  to  Brother 
Jonathan  over  the  water,  that  she  was  doing  to  poor  Paddy  at 
home.  But  Jonathan  was  a  man  of  other  mettle — more  power 
to  him  !  The  colonists  of  North  America  rose  in  arms.  Eng- 
land would  not  give  them  tea  to  drink  without  laying  a  tax 
upon  it ;  and  when  the  tea  arrived  in  Boston,  they  took  it  out 
of  the  ships  and  flung  it  into  the  sea.  At  first,  as  we  know, 
America  had  no  idea  or  wish  to  separate  from  England  ;  they 
only  wanted  to  assert  their  rights  fairly  and  conscientiously  ; 
and  they  appealed  to  the  British  Constitution — ^just  as  Grattan 
did  in  Ireland,  when  he  said  :  "  I  am  ready  to  die  for  England ; 
but  I  must  have  her  charter  in  my  hand,  even  when  I  am  dead  !  " 
They  only  asked  the  law  that  England's  glorious  Constitution 
has  provided  for  her  subjects,  if  that  law  were  fairly  adminis- 
tered ;  for  the  law  is  just ;  the  charter  is  grand  ;  the  Constitu- 
tion is,  as  the  great  Dr.  Newman  says,  perhaps  the  grandest 
thing  in  the  world  after  the  Catholic  Church.  But  the  Consti- 
tution has  been  warped  ;  its  benefits  have  been  denied,  over 
and  over  again,  to  the  people ;  and  the  law  has  been  adminis- 
tered in  a  partial  and  unjust  spirit.  Well,  my  friends,  1775 
saw  America  in  arms.  England  was  obliged  to  send  every 
available  soldier  that  she  had  here  ;  and  not  only  this,  but, 
to  her  eternal  disgrace,  she  poured  her  Hessian  mercena- 
ries in  upon  America ;  and  she  hired  the  North  American 
Indians  to  cut  the  throats  of  the  colonists  and  scalp  them. 
I  don't  know,  I  confess,  why  there  should  be  this  great 
friendship — this  great  "cousinship,"  and  all  this  talk  about 
"  blood  thicker  than  water,"  which  you  always  hear  between 
England  and  America.  When  an  Englishman  speaks  in  Amer- 
ica, of  "  blood  thicker  than  water,"  you  may  ask,  if  it  was  so 
very  thick,  why  did  England  hire  the  Hessians  to  shed  it  ?  Why 
did  she  hire  the  Indians  to  shed  it  if  it  was  so  very  warm,  so 
very  friendly?  It  suits  England  to-day,  in  the  hour  of  her  de- 
cline and  weakness,  to  be  constantly  talking  to  Americans  about 
the  "  same  race  "  and  "  a  common  origin  ;  "  but  it  was  a  pretty 
manner  in  which  she  served  her  own  race  in  the  American 
Revolution. 

A  call  was  made  upon  Ireland  for  four  thousand  troops. 
The  Anglo-Irish  Governor  said :  "  Give  us  the  Irish  soldiers, 
and  we  will  give  you  four  thousand  Hessians  to  keep  Ireland 


236  The  Volunteers  of    82. 

quiet ;  "  and  it  was  added,  by  way  of  inducement,  that  all  the 
Hessians  were  the  very  best  of  Protestants.  Now,  mark  how 
significant  that  is.  We  are  told  that  the  Irish  were  men  unable 
to  fight ;  told  that  they  never  made  a  good  battle  in  any  cause  ; 
we  are  told  that  the  attribute  of  bravery  in  the  Irish  character 
is  a  doubtful  one,  and,  in  a  word,  scarcely  due  to  us.  Now, 
may  I  ask,  if  England  thought  that  four  thousand  Irishmen 
wouldn't  fight  as  well  as  four  thousand  Hessians,  why  did  she 
ask  for  the  Irishmen  and  ignore  the  Hessians  ?  Why  didn't 
she  send  the  Hessians  to  America  instead  of  sending  them  to 
Ireland  and  taking  the  poor  Irish  ?  It  was  because  she  knew 
well  that,  perhaps,  the  Hessian  might  turn  his  back,  but  the 
Irishman  would  fight  till  he'd  die.  Well,  my  friends,  the  Irish 
Parliament  gave  them  four  thousand  soldiers,  but,  for  once  in 
their  lives,  they  had  a  ray  of  the  grace  of  God  upon  them,  and 
refused  to  take  the  Hessians.  They  said  :  "  No ;  we  will  not 
take  any  foreign  mercenaries  into  Ireland  ;  but  we  will  tell  you 
what  we  will  do  :  If  you  will  give  us  arms,  we  will  organize 
volunteers  for  the  defense  of  the  country."  The  moment  the 
word  was  mentioned  in  Belfast,  in  the  north,  Irish  volunteer 
companies  were  formed.  Irishmen  stood  again  shoulder  to 
shoulder.  The  government  reluctantly,  in  1779,  gave  them 
arms,  and  Ireland,  in  six  months,  beheld  a  native  army  of  fifty 
thousand  men,  as  well  organized  and  drilled  as  any  army  in  the 
world.  The  volunteer  organization  spread  ;  the  nation  made 
them  presents  of  artillery  ;  the  first  ladies  in  Ireland  wove  their 
flags.  They  were  of  all  classes  of  men,  officered  by  the  best 
nobility  in  the  land.  Lord  Charlemont,  Henry  Grattan,  the 
Duke  of  Leinster,  and  Henry  Flood — all  the  highest  intellects 
in  Ireland — the  noblest  and  best  blood  of  the  country,  were  at 
the  head  of  the  "  Volunteers." 

In  1 78 1,  according  to  Sir  Jonah  Barrington,  their  numbers 
had  swelled  into  eighty  thousand  perfectly  drilled  and  perfectly 
organized  men.  The  originator  of  all  this  was  the  famous 
Henry  Flood,  a  man  intolerant  in  his  religious  ideas — for  he 
hated  us  Catholics  "  as  the  devil  hates  holy  water."  But, 
although  intolerant  in  religion,  he  was  a  man  of  great  mind 
and  of  great  love  for  Ireland.  So  soon  as  the  English  Govern- 
ment saw  the  willingness  of  these  men,  springing  up  all  over 
the  land  ;  under  the  Earl  of  Clanricarde,  in  Galway  and  Mayo ' 


The  Volunteers  of  '82.  237 

in  the  south,  under  O'Brien  ;  in  the  north,  under  other  chief- 
tains; in  Leinster,  under  the  Earl  of  Kildare,  Lord  Charle- 
mont,  Henry  Grattan,  Flood,  Hussey  Burgh,  and  others,  the 
English  Government  got  afraid  of  their  lives,  and  wanted  them 
disbanded,  and  to  get  their  arms  back.  But  Ireland  was  armed  ; 
and  then  the  immortal  Henry  Grattan  assembled  their  leaders. 
Flood  was  amongst  them.  Lord  Charlemont,  and  other  dis- 
tinsfuished  members  of  the  Irish  Protestant  Parliament.  When 
they  all  met  together,  they  asked  the  significant  question  : 
"  Now  that  we  have  fifty  thousand  men  armed,  what  are  we 
going  to  do  with  them?"  The  answer  to  the  question  came 
from  the  fiery  soul  and  the  great  head  of  the  immortal  Grattan. 
He  said :  "  Now  that  we  have  them  at  our  back,  we  can  speak 
as  an  united  nation.  We  will  not  allow  them  to  lay  down  their 
arms  until  we  have  achieved  legislative  and  religious  independ- 
ence for  Ireland."  Accordingly,  in  1779,  as  soon  as  ever  the 
"  Volunteers"  were  got  together,  Grattan  brought  into  the  Irish 
House  of  Commons  a  proposition  to  abolish  Sir  Edward  Poy- 
ning's  Law,  which  declared  that  the  Irish  could  not  make  laws 
for  themselves,  unless  they  first  got  permission  of  the  English 
king.  He  proposed  this  in  the  Irish  Parliament.  All  the 
weight  of  the  English  Government  was  against  him;  all  the 
rottenness  of  the  country  was  against  him  ;  but  the  streets  of 
Dublin  were  lined  with  the  "Volunteers  ;  "  and  they  had  their 
cannon  drawn  up  in  the  square  before  the  House  of  Commons. 
They  had  cards  around  the  mouth  of  the  guns,  inscribed  :  "Jus- 
tice to  Ireland,  or  else — " 

Poyning's  law  was  repealed.  The  English  King  was  only  too 
glad  to  say:  "  Gentlemen,  Ireland  has  a  right  to  make  her  own 
laws  ;  make  them  for  yourselves,"  A  few  weeks  later,  Grattan 
brought  in  another  bill ;  and  it  was  that  there  was  no  more  re- 
striction to  be  laid  upon  the  trade  of  Ireland.  He  said  :  "  You 
have  ruined  our  woolen  trade.  You  are  ruining  our  linen  trade 
with  excessive  taxation."  When  the  American  Revolution  had 
broken  out,  England  made  a  law  prohibiting  the  Irish  to  send 
any  cattle  or  food  of  any  kind  to  America.  It  is  easy,  to-day, 
to  say  that  the  Catholics  were  all  opposed  to  America.  If 
the  Catholics  of  Ireland  were  always  opposed  to  America,  and  to 
her  cause,  why  did  England  make  a  law  to  oblige  them  to  send 
ao  help  or,  succor  in  the  way  of  food  to  America  ?     This  law 


238  The  Volunteers  of  '82. 

had  crushed  our  commerce  and  trade.  Grattan  brought  in  his 
bill,  in  April,  1779.  Once  more  the  Government  of  England 
was  opposed  to  him.  Once  more  the  king  wrote  over  to  the 
Lord-Lieutenant  of  Ireland,  "  Don't  send  me  any  bill  that  will 
release  Ireland.  I  will  not  hear  of  it.  I  won't  sign  it."  Grat- 
tan proposed  his  bill  in  the  House  of  Commons,  and  the  slavish 
House  was  afraid  to  pass  it.  They  tore  it  before  his  eyes; 
it  was  thrown  at  him;  but  Grattan  fell  back  upon  his  fifty 
thousand  men,  and  said :  "  Here — here  are  the  men  with 
arms  in  their  hands,  with  flags  tossing  and  waving  for  Ire- 
land. You  must  give  her  commercial  freedom."  A  united, 
an  armed  nation  spoke  these  words,  and  they  were  obliged 
to  suspend  and  to  repeal  every  law,  and  to  declare  with  the 
sanction  and  signature  of  the  English  king  that  Ireland  was 
free  to  trade  in  her  woolen  manufactures  and  all  the  exports, 
with  the  West  Indies,  with  America,  or,  in  fact,  with  any 
nation. 

Then  Grattan  made  the  memorable  remark  in  his  speech  to 
the  Irish  Parliament ;  he  said  :  "  Gentlemen,  your  forefathers, 
sitting  in  this  House,  sold  and  destroyed  the  trade  and  liberty 
of  Ireland.  Now,  I  have  returned  to  her  her  trade,  and  now 
I  demand  that  you  return  to  Ireland  her  liberty."  The  fifty 
thousand,  by  this  time,  were  become  eighty  thousand  ;  and  on 
that  glorious  April  day  of  1782,  Henry  Grattan  proposed  in 
the  Irish  Parliament,  and  it  was  passed  and  sanctified  as  a 
law,  that  Ireland  was  a  free  nation,  wearing  an  imperial  crown, 
in  these  memorable  words  :  "  It  is  enacted  that  the  crown  of 
Ireland  is  an  imperial  crown,  and  inseparably  annexed  to  Great 
Britain,  on  which  connection  the  interest  and  happiness  of  both 
nations  essentially  depend.  But  that  the  kingdom  of  Ireland 
is  a  distinct  kingdom,  with  a  Parliament  of  her  own  and  legis- 
lative power ;  and  that  there  is  no  body  of  men  competent  to 
make  laws  to  bind  this  nation,  except  the  King,  the  Lords,  and 
the  Commons  of  Ireland."  The  crown  of  Ireland  was  an  im- 
perial crown.  She  was  a  nation,  with  her  own  Parliament, 
her  own  laws,  her  own  genius,  her  own  influence  over  her  own 
resources,  and  her  own  debts  ;  with  her  own  right  to  tax  her- 
self; her  own  laws  to  execute,  and  every  other  right ;  and  she 
merely  acknowledged  the  union  with  England  in  the  interest 
and  for  the  well-being  of  both  countries.     That  was  the  decla- 


The  Volunteers  of  '82.  239 

ration  of  Henry  Grattan,  and  it  struck  terror  into  the  heart  of 
England.  It  was  the  most  magnificent  declaration  that  Ireland 
ever  made  of  her  nationality  and  her  claim  to  full  and  imperial 
freedom  as  a  nation  and  empire.  Grattan  had  eighty  thousand 
men  at  his  back  ;  and  in  one  month  his  message  was  sent  to 
England.  "  I  send  this  law,"  he  said,  "  to  England  ;  I  give 
England  one  month  to  decide ;  and  if  she  decide  not  in  one 
month — there  are  the  men."  That  was  on  the  17th  of  April, 
1782.  Before  the  month  was  over — before  the  17th  of  May — ■ 
it  came  back  acknowledged  by  the  English  Parliament,  and 
signed  by  the  English  King — acknowledging  that  Ireland's 
crown  was  an  imperial  crown — that  Ireland  was  a  nation  united, 
and,  in  truth,  perfectly  equal  with  England  ;  that  the  English 
Parliament  had  no  right  or  title  under  heaven  to  govern  Ire- 
land, but  only  the  Irish  Parliament,  submitting  to  the  English 
crown.  Then  Grattan  made  his  famous  speech  in  the  Irish 
Parliament.  He  said :  "  I  found  Ireland  upon  her  knees.  I 
lifted  her  up.  I  watched  her  as  she  took  her  place  amongst 
the  nations  ;  I  saw  the  crown  upon  her  head.  And  now,  all 
that  remains  for  me  is  to  bow  before  that  august  form,  and 
pray — *  Este^perpetiia  ' — be  thou  perpetual." 

This  was  the  climax  of  the  triumph  of  the  "  Volunteers." 
They  had  gained  all  they  asked  or  sought  for,  for  Ireland.  One 
year  later,  they  met  in  convention  ;  and  I  regret  to  have  to  say 
what  I  am  about  to  say.  Their  generals  and  officers  met  and 
took  measures  for  the  reformation  of  the  Irish  Parliament,  and 
to  consider  the  representation  of  the  people.  When  it  was 
proposed  to  these  officers  and  generals  of  the  "  Volunteers  " 
to  demand  the  emancipation  of  three  millions  of  Catholics  in 
Ireland — to  my  heart's  regret  I  have  to  say  it — they  refused  to 
grant  to  these,  emancipation,  or  to  petition  for  it.  They  refused 
to  give  to  their  Catholic  fellow-countrymen  the  liberty  which 
they  had  won  for  themselves.  And  Catholic  Ireland  felt  her 
heart  within  her  growing  faint,  and  breaking — to  see  the  very 
force  in  which  she  had  put  her  trust,  now  wanting  in  the  hour 
of  her  danger  and  of  her  strength.  At  the  same  time,  deserted 
by  their  brethren,  their  Catholic  countrymen  lost  heart  in  them. 
When  they  were  organized,  no  Catholic  was  allowed  to  enter 
the  ranks  of  the  "  Volunteers,"  or  to  carry  arms.  The  poor 
Catholics  of  Ireland  collected  and  sent  money  to  Dublin — they 


240  The  Volunteers  of  *82. 

sent  ;^ 1 00,000  to  provide  uniforms  for  their  Protestant  fellow- 
citizens.  After  a  time,  as  the  American  war  went  on,  and  the 
colonists  waxed  stronger,  England  got  more  fearful.  And, 
when  Burgoyne  was  taken  prisoner,  and  when  Clinton  retired 
before  the  unconquerable  sword  of  Washington,  England  was 
obliged  to  permit  the  Catholics  to  join  the  "  Volunteers." 
Instantly  the  Irish  Catholics  sprang  into  the  ranks,  and  took 
their  arms  into  their  hands.  Without  one  feeling  of  rebellion 
or  disloyalty,  but  only  the  pure  love  of  Ireland,  they  stood 
prepared  to  die  for  the  liberties  of  their  fellow-countrymen,  as 
well  as  their  own. 

Then  came  the  sad  dispersion.  The  English  Government 
had  introduced  the  element  of  disunion  even  among  the  "Vol- 
unteers." Some  were  in  favor  of  emancipating  the  Catholics  ; 
others  were  not.  A  fatal  division  was  introduced,  and  then  a 
law  was  quietly  brought  into  the  Irish  Parliament,  that  it  would 
be  better  to  increase  the  regular  army  to  twenty  thousand  men 
— not  fifteen  hundred,  but  twenty  thousand  men.  It  was  also 
passed  that  they  should  give  twenty  thousand  pounds  towards 
arming  the  militia ;  and  in  three  or  four  short  years  the  "  Vol- 
unteers "  were  dispersed ;  their  arms  were  taken  from  them 
and  put  into  the  hands  of  a  militia  entirely  controlled  by  mili- 
tary officers  who  were  all  English.  The  last  hope  of  Ireland 
died  for  a  time. 

Then  began  the  series  of  bad  laws.  The  "  Convention  Act  " 
was  passed  under  the  influence  of  the  Duke  of  Wellington.  As 
soon  as  they  found  that  the  "  Volunteers "  were  disbanded, 
they  knew  that  they  could  do  as  they  liked  with  the  liberties  of 
Ireland.  One  of  the  first  laws  they  made  was  that  it  was  not 
lawful  for  Irishmen  to  hold  political  conventions,  or  any  other 
kind  of  conventions,  or  nominate  delegates  who  were  to  speak 
on  any  occasion,  on  any  subject.  One  injustice  followed  another, 
until  the  country,  inflamed  by  the  maxims  of  the  mighty 
French  Revolution,  goaded  to  desperation,  made  the  ineffectual 
effort  of  '98.  Then,  crushed,  wounded,  bleeding,  deceived,  and 
degraded,  nothing  remained  but  for  the  accursed  Castlereagh 
to  walk  over  the  prostrate  ruin,  and  over  the  bodies  of  his 
countrymen,  and,  in  spite  of  oaths,  entreaties — in  spite  of  the 
signature  of  the  King,  declaring  that  Ireland  alone  had  a  right 
to  make  her  own  laws — in  the  year  1800  they  took  the  Parlia- 


The  Volunteers  of  '82.  241 

ment  from  us ;  and  from  that  day  to  this  our  laws  are  made  for 
us  by  Englishmen  in  England. 

Thus  ended  the  "  Volunteers  ;  "  but  the  lesson  which  it  teaches 
has  not  died  with  this  glorious  movement.  My  friends,  it  is 
not  a  lesson  of  revolution  or  of  rebellion  that  this  glorious 
movement  of  '82  teaches ;  it  is  the  higher  lesson  of  union 
among  Irishmen.  It  was  not  the  "  Irish  Volunteers  "  that  the 
English  feared  so  much — though  they  were  a  powerful  army,  it 
is  true ;  but  their  main  strength  lay  in  the  fact  that  they  had 
three  millions  of  their  Catholic  fellow-countrymen  united  to 
them  heart  and  soul.  It  was  not  Ireland  armed,  but  Ireland 
united,  that  made  the  tyrant  tremble,  and  made  the  English 
Government  sign  every  bill  as  soon  as  it  was  put  forth.  A  sin- 
gular example  of  the  union  which  bound  up  all  these  men  was 
given  at  that  time.  Some  of  the  Belfast  and  Antrim  "  Volun- 
teers "  were  Protestants,  all  Orangemen,  to  a  man,  yet,  so  united 
were  they  in  that  day  with  their  Catholic  fellow-countrymen 
and  all  classes  of  men,  in  that  perfect  union,  that  they  actually 
marched  out,  on  Sunday,  and  heard  Mass.  Ireland  was  united. 
Of  course,  there  must  be  religious  divisions  where  there  is  dif- 
ference of  religion.  If  I  can't  unite  with  my  fellow-countryman 
in  believing  what  he  believes — or  rather,  to  pare  down  my  be- 
lief till  it  comes  to  nothing  to  suit  him — am  I,  therefore,. 
to  say  to  him  "  stand  aside  "  ?  am  I,  therefore,  to  say  to  him,. 
"We  have  no  common  country.  I  have  nothing  in  common 
with  you  "  ?  Oh  !  no.  The  most  glorious  battles  of  modern 
times  have  been  fought  in  the  trenches  where  the  Protestant 
and  Catholic  stood  side  by  side.  And  England,  who  knows  so 
well  how  to  divide  us  on  the  religious  question,  at  home,  knows 
as  well  how  to  unite  us,  abroad,  in  the  ranks  of  her  army.  The 
88th  "  Connaught  Rangers  "  were  Catholics  to  a  man  ;  and  they 
were  side  by  side,  on  the  field  of  Waterloo,  with  the  Protestant 
soldiers  of  the  north  of  Ireland,  and  of  England.  There  are 
questions  second  only  in  their  sacredness  to  that  of  religion, 
which  is  first.  The  question  of  nationality  is  second  only  in 
importance  to  the  religious  question,  because  on  that  great 
national  question  depends  what  Catholic  and  Protestant  alike 
hold  dear — public  liberty.  On  this  great  question,  thanks  be  to 
God,  every  man  can  be  united  with  his  fellow-man,  no  matter 
what  shade  of  religious  division  may  exist  between  them.     I 

16 


242  The   Volunteers  of  '82. 

accept  the  word  of  the  English  historian  who  has  come  amongst 
us,  in  the  case  of  Ireland — I  accept  the  word  that  he  has  said. 
If  he  be  reported  rightly,  he  said,  that  in  the  day  that  Ireland 
is  united,  Ireland  shall  be  invincible.  Away,  then,  with  all  reli- 
gious animosity  that  would  interfere  with  man's  co-operation 
with  his  fellow-man  for  native  land.  Away  with  that  fatal  divi- 
sion that  would  fain  make  one  Ireland  for  the  Protestant  Irish- 
man and  another  for  the  Catholic  Irishman — whereas  the 
"  Green  Island  "  is  the  common  mother-land  of  all.  My  Catho- 
lic countrymen,  at  the  peril  of  your  eternal  salvation,  be  as  firm 
as  the  granite  rock  upon  every  principle  of  your  Church  and 
your  religion ;  be  as  conservative  of  that  faith  as  you  are  of 
your  immortal  souls,  else  you  will  lose  that  faith,  and  those 
souls  with  it.  But,  I  say  to  you,  just  as  you  are  to  be  conserva- 
tive in  your  faith  as  you  can  be,  so,  upon  the  grand  question 
upon  which  the  freedom  and  happiness  of  the  dear  old  land  de- 
pends, be  as  liberal,  as  large-hearted,  as  truly  united  upon  it  as 
you  are  to  be  strong  and  united  upon  the  question  of  your  own 
religion.  Then  shall  the  future,  seen  by  the  prophetic  eye  of 
Grattan,  when  he  hailed  his  Ireland  as  an  independent  nation, 
be  realized  by  the  men  of  to-day.  Then  shall  the  dream  of  the 
lover  and  the  aspiration  of  the  patriot  shine  forth  in  the  glory 
of  its  fulfillment:  when  domestic  laws,  made  by  Irishmen,  for 
Ireland  and  for  Irishmen,  shall  govern  the  state  affairs  of  Ire- 
land ;  when  every  want  of  Ireland  will  be  the  best  forethought 
of  Irish  loving  minds  and  intellects ;  when  every  Irishman  will 
have  the  first  place  paramount  in  the  deliberations  of  an  Irish 
Parliament  ;  when  from  out  the  intellect  and  the  fullness  of  the 
heart  of  Ireland,  in  the  future  day,  shall  beam  around  my 
mother-land  and  realize  the  glories  of  days  long  past  the  sun 
that  has  set  for  so  many  years  in  clouds  of  blood — but  which 
shall  rise  serenely  in  the  new  Orient  of  freedom,  for  dear  old, 
much-loved  Ireland. 


RODERICK   O'CONNOR,    THE   LAST 
MONARCH  OF  IRELAND. 


[Lecture  delivered  in  the  Academy  of  Music,  Brooklyn,  on   Sunday  evening,  No- 
vember 2,  1872,  for  the  benefit  of  St.  Anne's  Church.] 


^^^ADIES  AND  Gentlemen:  Generally  speaking,  when 
a  man  comes  to  speak  on  an  Irish  subject,  he  has  some 
room,  some  scope,  some  opportunity  of  making  his 
audience  laugh,  or  at  least  smile ;  there  is  so  much  of 
humor,  or,  if  you  will,  fun,  in  the  national  character,  that  it  is 
almost  impossible  to  avoid  laughter  in  the  discussion  of  an  Irish 
subject.  I  regret  to  say  that  I  will  not  create  a  single  smile  on 
your  faces  to-night.  I  am  come  to  discuss  the  history  of  a  dy- 
ing nationality,  and  its  last  king.  I  am  come  to  tell  you  of 
your  own  fathers  and  mine — how  they  lost  the  last  greatest  gift 
of  God,  after  that  of  divine  faith,  namely,  the  gift  of  their  free- 
dom, and  of  their  national  liberty.  The  theme  which  I  am 
come  to  discuss  before  you  this  evening  is  the  life  and  the  times 
and  the  character  of  Ireland's  last  king,  Roderick  O'Connor — 
as  brave  a  man,  perhaps,  as  ever  drew  a  sword  for  God  and  for 
father-land  ; — as  unfortunate  a  man  as  ever  was  doomed  to  pre- 
serve his  dignity,  and  to  go  down  to  his  grave  in  the  midst  of 
misfortunes,  but  without  a  taint  of  dishonor. 

Now,  in  order  that  we  may  understand  the  times  and  the  life 
of  this  man  properly,  I  must  invite  your  attention  to  the  close 
of  that  dreadful  contest  which  took  place  between  the  Irish  and 
the  Danes.  For  three  hundred  years  Ireland  was  peaceable  and 
happy — the  home  of  saints  and  of  scholars — the  university  of 
the  Christian  world,  and  the  light  of  the  ages,  from  the  fifth 
down  to  the  close  of  the  eighth  century.  For  three  hundred 
years  the  whole  world  beheld  her  light,  and  gloried  in  the  bright- 


244  Roderick  O'Connor, 

ness  thereof.  Her  saints  went  forth  from  her  green  bosom,  and 
evangelized  the  whole  world.  Every  nation  in  Europe — aye, 
down  even  to  the  south  of  Italy — preserves  the  memory  of  the 
Irish  saints,  and  loves  to  dwell,  year  by  year,  upon  the  virtues 
and  the  grandeur  of  character  of  the  men  who  came  from  the 
fair  isle  of  the  Western  Ocean,  to  preach  to  them  the  Gospel  of 
Jesus  Christ,  and  His  sanctity. 

Then  came  that  fearful  invasion  that  swept  simultaneously 
over  Ireland,  over  England,  and  over  France.  The  Northmen 
— those  fierce,  tall,  blue-eyed,  fair-haired  warriors  of  the  North 
— pagans,  who  adored  Odin  and  Thor,  and  the  Scandinavian 
gods — zealous  for  the  cause  of  their  false  divinities — zealous, 
because  of  the  bravery  of  their  spirits  and  indomitable  heart — 
they  swept  over  all  the  northwestern  countries  of  Europe : 
they  subdued  England,  fixed  themselves  in  the  North  of  France, 
and  invaded  Ireland.  For  three  hundred  years,  every  year  be- 
held a  new  army  of  the  Danes  poured  into  the  land.  Still  the 
Irish  Gael  met  them,  hilt  to  hilt,  and  foot  to  foot,  and  disputed 
every  inch  of  Irish  land,  and  fought  them  as  only  men  can  fight 
who  are  animated  by  a  true  love  for  God,  for  the  altar  of  God, 
and  for  their  native  land.  Sad  and  weary  was  the  contest.  An 
army  was  defeated  on  one  day,  only  to  reproduce  itself  on  the 
morrow  in  the  shape  of  a  new  army  landed  from  the  Northern 
Seas. 

Finally,  towards  the  end  of  the  third  century  of  the  Danish 
invasion,  Almighty  God  gave  to  Ireland  one  of  His  grandest 
and  highest  gifts,  namely,  a  man  heroic  in  mind,  heroic  in  heart, 
capable  of  commanding  the  situation,  capable  of  understanding 
the  wants  of  his  age — a  man  who  was  able  to  bind  up  all  the 
incoherent  elements  of  the  nation,  to  make  them  as  one  man,  and 
then,  united,  to  lead  them  against  the  common  foe ;  and  that  was 
the  illustrious  and  immortal  Brian,  King  of  Munster,  commonly 
called  Brian  Boroimhe.  History  acknowledges  that,  amongst 
its  heroes,  amongst  the  men  of  that  twelfth  century,  amongst 
all  those  that  figured  in  the  various  lands  of  Europe — the  great- 
est and  most  massive  character  that  shines  out,  is  the  character 
of  the  Irish  monarch  and  hero  who  was  able  to  lead  an  army 
of  united  Irishmen  into  the  plains  of  Clontarf,  and  to  vanquish 
the  Danes.  And  yet,  my  friends,  if  we  reflect  upon  it,  this 
man — the  grandest  figure  in  our  history — was  still  an  usurper 


The  Last  Monarch  of  Ireland.  245 

of  the  national  crown.  You  know  the  ancient  constitution  of 
Ireland,  under  the  Brehon  laws,  and  under  the  system  of  tan- 
istry,  was  that  each  of  the  provinces  of  the  empire  had  its  own 
monarch  or  king.  The  great  leading  families  governed  these  prov- 
inces for  two  thousand  years  and  more,  under  the  ancient  Mile- 
sian constitution.  The  O'Connors,  of  Connaught ;  the  O'Briens, 
of  Munster;  the  O'Neills  and  O'Donnells,  of  Ulster;  McMur- 
roughs,  O'Byrnes,  and  O'Tooles  of  Leinster.  Two  thousand 
years  before  Christ  was  born,  the  sons  of  Milesius  landed  in 
Ireland  from  the  coast  of  Spain.  The  ancient  Druid,  or  prophet 
of  their  race,  foretold  to  them  that  it  was  their  destiny  to  land 
upon  and  to  colonize  the  green  Island  of  the  West ;  and  the 
poet  describes  their  arriving  on  the  coast  of  Ireland,  dreaming 
of  their  destiny — hoping,  even  in  their  day-dreams,  to  behold 
the  island  that  was  to  be  theirs  : 

"  They  came  from  a  land  beyond  the  sea  ; 
And  now,  o'er  the  Western  main, 
Set  sail  in  their  good  ships,  gallantly, 
From  the»  sunny  land  of  Spain. 
'  Oh  !  Where's  the  isle  we've  seen  in  dreams — 
Our  destined  home  or  grave?' — 
Thus  sang  they,  as  by  the  morning's  beams, 
They  swept  the  Atlantic  wave. 

"  And,  lo  !  where  afar  o'er  ocean  shines 
A  sparkle  of  radiant  green, 
As  though  in  that  deep  lay  emerald  mines, 
Whose  light  through  the  wave  was  seen. 
•  'Tis  Innisfail  !  'tis  Innisfail ! ' 
Rings  o'er  the  echoing  sea  ; 
While,  bending  to  heaven,  the  warriors  hail 
That  home  of  the  brave  and  free. 

"  Then  turn  they  unto  the  Eastern  wave. 

Where  now  their  day-god's  eye 
A  look  of  such  sunny  omen  gave 

As  lighted  up  sea  and  sky. 
Nor  frown  was  seen  through  sky  or  sea. 

Nor  tear  o'er  leaf  or  sod, 
When  first  on  their  Isle  of  Destiny 

Our  great  forefathers  trod." 

They   brought    with    them   that   peculiar    constitution,   the 
grandest,  perhaps,  of  any  ancient  form  of  government  that  ex- 


24^  Roderick  O'Connor, 

isted — the  most  like  to  that  grand  republican  government 
under  which  you  citizens  of  the  United  States  live  to-day. 
There  was  no  serfdom  amongst  them.  No  Celtic  man  was  ever 
born,  or  ever  lived,  or  ever  died  as  a  serf  or  slave.  It  is  a  re- 
markable fact,  my  friends,  that  nearly  every  country — aye,  every 
country  in  Europe  began  under  the  system  of  serfdom  and 
slavery.  The  common  people,  as  they  were  called — the  vulgus — 
were  mere  serfs  attached  to  the  soil.  If  a  nobleman,  a  great 
man,  or  prince,  wished  to  sell  his  estate,  he  not  only  sold  it, 
but  he  also  sold  the  people.  If  he  had  five  hundred  families  on 
his  estate,  he  sold  them  all ;  they  were  transferred  from  him  to 
another  man  :  and  they  had  to  serve  that  other  man  as  they 
served  their  former  master.  This  system  of  serfdom  or  slavery 
was  the  original  condition  of  every  nationality  in  Europe — as 
it  was  in  Russia  down  to  our  own  days — with  the  sole  excep- 
tion of  Ireland.  In  Ireland,  certain  great  families  ruled  the 
land  ;  and  they  were  all  "  Mac's  "  and  "  O's."  To  this  day,  let 
me  know  your  name,  and  if  you  be  a  "  Mac  "  or  an  "  O,"  I  can 
tell  you  what  part  of  Ireland  you  or  your  fathers  came  from. 
Some  time  ago,  in  New  York,  a  poor  fellow  came  to  me,  asking 
me  to  give  him  a  letter,  to  get  him  a  situation  as  porter  or 
something,  in  some  establishment.  When  I  sat  down  to  write 
the  letter,  I  asked  him  :  "  What  is  your  name  ?"  "  Well,  your 
reverence,"  he  said,  "  I  am  a  McGuire."  "  And  what  made  you 
leave  the  County  Fermanagh  ?  "  "  Oh  !  then,  God  knows,"  said 
he,  "  I  left  it  through  misfortune  !  "  If  you  hear  the  name  of 
an  O'Reilly,  you  at  once  say,  "  Oh  !  he  came  from  the  County 
Cavan."  If,  on  the  other  hand,  a  poor  fellow  comes  into  the 
store  to  you,  and  says.  "  I  come  from  Ireland,  and  my  name  is 
McDermott,"  you  at  once  say:  "Oh!  you  are  a  Connaught 
man."  If,  again,  a  tall,  square-shouldered,  dark-haired,  hazel- 
eyed  man  steps  in  like  a  giant  and  stands  before  you,  and  says : 
"  I  came  to  this  country,  and  I  am  one  of  the  O'Neills  ;  "  then 
you  say  :  "  Ah  !  then  you  came  from  Ulster,  my  friend — from 
the  County  Tyrone."  There  is  no  mistake  about  it ;  even  our 
Norman  name  of  Burke  is  altogether  Connaught. 

Well,  my  friends,  in  the  ancient  Constitution  of  Ireland  there 
was  no  such  thing  as  slavery — every  man  was  free  ;  every  man 
was  of  the  same  blood,  the  same  family,  the  same  name  with 
his  chieftain.     They  elected  their  chieftains;  they  elected  not 


The  Last  Monarch  of  Ireland.  247 

only  the  princes  of  the  name  and  of  the  line,  but  also  the 
"  tanist,"  or  man  who  had  the  right  to  succeed  him.  If  the 
King  of  Ireland  died,  his  son  did  not  succeed  him,  as  the  Prince 
of  Wales  would  succeed  Queen  Victoria.  Not  a  bit  of  it.  They 
elected  the  best  man,  the  bravest  man,  the  man  fitted  to  govern  ; 
and  they  made  him  their  chieftain  ;  and  he  was  called,  during 
the  life  of  his  predecessor,  the  "  Tanist,"  according  to  the  law 
of  tanistry.  Accordingly,  when  a  time  of  war  or  trouble  arose, 
the  chieftain  gave  the  signal  and  drew  his  men  around  him.  He 
was  called  The  McMahon,  The  O'Neill,  The  O'Dwyer,  The 
O'Rourke,  The  O'Donnell — he  blew  his  horn  and  rallied  his 
men  around  him;  and  they  came:  the  blacksmith  from  his 
forge,  the  thresher  from  the  threshing-floor,  the  ploughman 
from  his  plough  ;  they  took  their  battle-axes  and  spears,  and 
went  out  to  fight  with  their  chieftains  as  man  to  man,  not  as 
slaves  under  their  ruler.  This  being  the  Constitution  of  ancient 
Ireland,  it  happened  that,  toward  the  close  of  the  Danish  in- 
vasion, the  king  selected  as  "  Ard-righ,"  or  High  King,  was  a 
Meath  man,  Malachi  McLaughlin,  one  of  the  bravest  and  best 
kings  that  ever  ruled  in  Ireland.  It  is  written  of  him  that  his 
delight  was  to  take  a  young  horse  that  never  was  broken  in, 
and,  placing  one  hand  upon  the  animal's  neck,  he  would  bound 
to  his  back,  draw  his  sword,  and  dash  with  the  unbroken  ani- 
mal into  the  midst  of  the  enemy — slashing  right  and  left,  and 
cutting  his  way  right  through  them.  Wise  in  council,  holy  in 
his  life  was  this  grand  and  magnificent  Malachi ;  and  he  was  the 
man  whom  the  poet  commemorates  when  he  says — 

"  Let  Erin  remember  the  days  of  old, 

Ere  her  faithless  sons  betrayed  her, 
When  Malachi  wore  the  collar  of  gold 

Which  he  won  from  the  proud  invader. 
When  her  Kings,  with  standard  of  green  unfurled, 

Led  the  '  Red  Branch '  Knights  to  danger ; 
Ere  the  Emerald  Gem  of  the  Western  world 

Was  set  in  the  crown  of  the  stranger." 

In  the  glen  of  Glenamadda,  in  Wicklow,  near  to  that  lovely 
vale  where  the  two  rivers  meet — where  their  waters  blend  to- 
gether— near  that  wonderful  vale  of  Avoca,  Malachi,  the  King 
of  Ireland,  at  the  head  of  his  troops,  met  a  great  army  of  the 
Danes.     They  joined  in  battle,  the  Danes  with  the  cry  of  their 


24S  Roderick  O' Connor ^ 

heathen  gods — McLaughlin  and  his  men  with  the  cry,  "  For  God, 
His  Christ  and  His  Holy  Church,"  and  before  the  evening  sun 
set,  six  thousand  Danes  were  stretched  dead  upon  the  green 
hill-sides  of  that  valley  of  Wicklow.  Thrice  on  this  day  did 
this  glorious  king  meet  a  certain  Danish  warrior  in  single  com- 
bat, and  after  striking  him  dead  with  his  battle-axe  tore  the 
golden  collar  from  his  neck  and  hung  it  around  his  own  as  a  tro- 
phy of  Celtic  victory  over  the  Scandinavians. 

And  yet,  brave  and  wise  and  holy  as  he  was,  there  was  an- 
other man  in  Ireland  brave  and  wise  and  holier  than  Malachi 
n, ;  and  that  was  the  illustrious  Brian,  of  the  house  of  Kin- 
cora,  by  the  Shannon,  in  Munster.  This  man  saw  the  evils  that 
were  on  the  land  ;  he  saw  the  Danes  on  every  side,  around 
the  sea-coast ;  he  saw  the  people  divided — the  very  chieftains 
divided  amongst  themselves ;  and  he  saw  at  the  head  of  the 
nation  a  man  whose  bravery  he  acknowledged,  whose  wisdom 
and  goodness  he  was  the  first  to  admit,  but  who  was  not  equal 
to  the  occasion.  Brian  seized  the  reigns  of  government  in  his 
own  strong  hands ;  he  gathered  his  armies  around  him ;  he 
rallied  the  grand  old  race  of  the  O'Brien's  ;  he  advanced  from 
the  banks  of  the  Shannon  ;  he  received  the  fealty  of  Connaught 
on  his  left  hand,  and  of  Leinster  before  him  ;  and  with  these 
three  provinces  around  him  he  attacked  the  Danes  on  Good 
Friday  morning.  With  the  crucifix  in  one  hand  and  his 
drawn  sword  in  the  other,  the  man  over  whose  head  eighty 
winters  had  passed,  rode  before  his  Irish  troops  and  cried  out 
from  his  war-horse,  "  Behold  this  sign,  O  Irishmen !  Re- 
member that  this  is  the  day  on  which  your  God  died  for 
you  ;  and  for  that  God  strike  a  blow  !  "  And  under  his  hand 
the  Irish  struck  such  a  blow,  that  on  that  day  at  Clontarf 
they  achieved  what  England  was  never  able  to  do — what  glo- 
rious France  was  unable  to  do — Ireland  shook  the  Danes 
from  her  bosom,  right  into  the  sea,  even  as  St.  Paul  shook 
off  the  venomous  serpent  from  his  hand,  in  the  island  of  Mileta. 

Ah  !  How  sad  was  the  evening  of  that  day.  The  sun  set 
over  the  western  coast  of  Ireland ;  the  nation  was  rejoicing — 
the  soldiers,  resting  upon  their  swords  and  spears,  were  tell- 
ing each  other  of  the  events  of  the  day.  But  there  were 
three  corpses  upon  that  field  of  Clontarf;  and  with  these  three 
the  hopes  of  Ireland  perished.     Brian  was  stretched  a  corpse 


The  Last  Monarch  of  Ireland.  249 

there.  The  old  man  had  retired  into  his  own  tent  in  the  even- 
ing, and  he  was  absorbed  in  prayer  before  the  image  of  Christ, 
when  a  Danish  fugitive  chanced  to  pass  that  way.  He  peered 
in,  and  seeing  the  old  king,  entered  his  tent  and  transfixed  him 
through  the  heart  with  his  spear.  Upon  the  field  lay  his  brave 
son,  Prince  Murrough,  and  his  grandson,  Turlough,  who  was 
also  a  prince.  Three  generations  of  the  one  royal  house  of 
Ireland  perished.  And  now,  anarchy  and  confusion  reigned  in 
the  land,  until  another  man  arose,  second  only  in  bravery,  in 
wisdom,  in  piety,  to  Brian  Boroihme,  and  that  man  was  Turlough 
O'Connor,  Prince  of  Connaught.  Brave  in  the  field  was  Tur- 
lough ;  wise  in  council  was  he.  He  subjected  all  the  various 
tribes  around  him  to  his  own  chieftainship,  and  they  acknowl- 
edged him.  The  star  of  the  house  of  O'Connor  of  Connaught 
arose  to  guide  the  nation  that  was  sorrowing  over  the  grave  of 
Brian,  with  the  bards  who  had  sung  over  him, 

"  Remember  the  glories  of  Brian  the  brave, 
Though  the  days  of  the  hero  are  o'er — 
Though  lost  to  Mononia  and  cold  in  the  grave, 
He  returns  to  Kincora  no  more." 

Thus  spoke  the  bard  of  Brian,  and  all  Ireland  wept.  Yet 
still  the  hopes  of  the  nation  revived  when  the  rising  star  of  the 
western  race  of  O'Connor,  the  head  of  that  race — brave,  as  I 
said,  in  the  field,  wise  in  the  council,  holy  before  the  altar  of 
God — assumed  the  sovereignty  of  the  western  part  of  Ireland. 
He  extended  his  sway  all  over  the  land  of  Erin,  that  only  de- 
sired to  see  the  character  of  the  true  Catholic  and  Christian 
shining  out  acknowledged  in  her  brave  king,  Turlough  O'Con- 
nor— that  he  was  as  holy  as  he  was  brave ;  and  they  all  sub- 
mitted to  him.  He  lived  until  the  year  11 56 — thirteen  years 
before  the  Norman  and  Saxon  invasion  of  Ireland.  Toward 
the  close  of  his  life — wearied  with  the  battles  and  strifes  of 
his  manhood,  he  founded  and  endowed  the  royal  convent  of 
Clonmacnoise,  for  the  Cistercian  monks  and  canons  regular 
of  St.  Augustine  ;  and  he  retired  into  the  midst  of  them. 
The  sanctity  of  the  olden  days  was  returning  upon  Ireland. 
The  days  of  Columba  and  Columbanus — the  days  of  Kieran 
and  the  saints  of  old  were  coming  back  upon  the  land.  Mala- 
chi,  a  saint  of  God,  was  Primate  of  Armagh ;  Laurence 
O'Toole,  a  saint  of  God,  was  Bishop  of  Glendalough ;  St.  Cel- 


250  Roderick  O'Connor, 

sus  was  sitting  on  another  episcopal  throne  in  Ireland  ;  and 
Ireland  had  the  honor  and  glory  of  three  living  saints  ruling 
her  Church  at  the  same  time.  The  clergy  and  bishops,  in  their 
council  at  Kells,  laid  down  wise  laws  for  the  regulation  of  eccle- 
siastical affairs.  The  kings  and  rulers  of  the  land  were  most 
anxious  to  give  to  the  world  and  to  their  subjects  the  ex- 
ample of  the  holiness  of  the  ancient  days.  The  Danes  had 
passed  away,  and  new  hopes  were  blooming  for  Ireland  ;  and 
the  people  looked  contentedly  on  the  figure  of  their  monarch, 
as  he  retired  from  their  view  into  the  cloister,  and  there 
lived  and  died  in  the  odor  of  sanctity.  He  brought  with  him 
royal  gifts  into  the  house  he  had  endowed.  History  tells 
us  that  he  brought  with  him  forty  thousand  ounces  of 
gold ;  that  he  adorned  the  altars,  and  built  up  the  glorious 
shrine  ;  and  when  he  saw  peace  and  calm  around  him,  he 
glided  quietly  into  that  eternity  which  was  before  him ; 
and,  as  was  befitting  an  Irish  hero,  an  Irish  monarch,  a 
prince  of  the  ancient  house  of  O'Connor,  he  died,  leaving  to 
his  people  as  an  inheritance  the  legacy  of  a  memory  that  was 
hallowed  by  them  as  that  of  a  saint. 

But  speedily  there  arose  from  the  same  house,  and  from 
the  line  of  Turlough,  the  young  monarch,  Roderick  O'Connor. 
Young,  splendid  in  figure,  a  prince  in  heart,  in  bravery, 
and  in  strength,  he  grasped  the  royal  sword  of  Brian, 
and  waved  over  Ireland  the  sceptre  of  a  monarch.  He 
was  scarcely  installed  in  his  royal  dignity,  when  a  great 
calamity  fell  upon  Ireland,  that  looms  over  her  and  blights 
her  like  the  dark  shadow  of  a  black  cloud  to  this  day.  All 
Ireland  acknowledged  Roderick  as  "  Ard-righ,"  or  "  High 
King."  The  glories  of  Tara  had  passed  away;  Tara  was  in 
ruins  then  as  it  is  to-day;  but  there,  upon  the  plains  of 
Boyle,  in  Roscommon,  rose  the  high  towers  and  lofty  palace 
of  Ireland's  king ;  and  there  Roderick  held  undoubted  and 
undisputed  sway  over  the  whole  of  Ireland.  The  O'Briens, 
the  McCarthy  Mor,  the  O'Sullivans,  of  the  South,  bowed 
before  him  ;  the  proud  O'Donnells  and  O'Neills,  of  the  North, 
yielded  their  tribute  and  homage  to  him ;  the  O'Tooles  and 
O'Byrnes  of  the  Wicklow  Glens  and  Kildare  Plains  of  Lein- 
ster;  the  O'Rourkes,  of  Breffni  and  Meath,  acknowledged 
him   as   their  king ;    whilst  all  the    septs  around  him,  in    his 


The  Last  Monarch  of  Ireland.  251 

own  province  of  Connaught,  gloried  in  the  name  of  their  great 
and  brave,  valiant  and  puissant  ruler,  Roderick  O'Connor,  the 
King  of  Ireland.  His  name  was  known  in  the  halls  of  the 
Plantagenets,  in  England.  His  name  was  known  in  the  halls 
of  the  princes  and  kings  of  France  and  of  Germany;  his  name 
resounded  in  the  Vatican  as  the  descendant  of  a  saint,  and  as 
one  who  emulated  the  virtues  as  well  as  rivaled  the  bravery  of 
his  great  ancestor,  Turlough  O'Connor. 

Now,  my  friends,  whilst  St.  Laurence  O'Toole  was  on  his 
archiepiscopal  throne  of  Dublin — whilst  peace  reigned  over  the 
country — whilst  Ireland  was  healing  the  deep  wounds  which 
the  Danes  had  left  upon  her  stately  form — a  man  came  to  Ire- 
land to  reform  the  Church  and  State,  and  bring  the  barbarous 
Irish  into  a  state  of  civilization  ;  and  that  man  was  Henry  II., 
the  Plantagenet  King  of  England.  Let  me  tell  you  something 
about  him.  He  was  of  a  family  so  wicked  that  the  great  St. 
Bernard  said  of  them — and  it  was  believed  all  over  Europe — 
that  they  came  from  the  devil.  The  words  of  St.  Bernard  were 
these  :  "  From  the  devil  they  have  come,  and  to  the  devil,  their 
father,  they  will  go."  This  man  held  all  the  bishoprics  of  Eng- 
land in  his  own  hands.  He  claimed  the  right  of  appointing 
and  investing  the  bishops.  In  those  days  the  Church  was 
very  rich  ;  and  whenever  a  bishop  died,  the  good  King  Henry 
took  the  ten  or  twelve  thousand  pounds — that  is  to  say, 
fifty,  or  sixty,  or  eighty  thousand  dollars — and  he  kept  it  for 
three  or  four  years  in  his  own  hands  before  he  appointed  a 
bishop.  He  wanted  the  money ;  and  I  will  tell  you  why. 
He  was  an  immoral,  an  impure,  and  debauched  man. 
He  wanted  the  money  that  belonged  to  the  poor  and  the 
Church  of  God,  to  expend  it  upon  his  own  vicious,  impure, 
and  immoral  pleasures.  In  order  to  show  what  manner  of  man 
he  was,  he  sent  three  of  his  knights — I  say  he  sent  them, — what- 
ever may  be  the  equivocations  of  history — to  shed  the 
blood  of  Thomas  a  Becket.  Henry's  three  knights  entered 
the  cathedral  at  Canterbury ;  they  found  the  holy  bishop  at 
vespers,  in  cope  and  mitre,  standing  before  the  altar ;  and 
there,  in  the  presence  of  God,  they  struck  him  ;  they  broke 
his  skull,  and  they  shed  his  brains  upon  the  altar  of  God.  This 
was  the  man  that  came  over  to  reform  the  Irish  ;  this  was 
the    man   that    came   over  to  educate  our  clergy   and   teach 


252  Roderick  O'Connor, 

them  how  to  say  Mass  ;  this  was  the  man  who  came  over  to 
teach  St.  Laurence  O'Toole — one  of  the  greatest  saints  that 
ever  Hved — how  to  behave  himself  properly  as  a  Christian.  Ac- 
cording to  Mr.  Froude,  the  Pope  wanted  a  policeman ;  and  he 
selected  a  man  that  had  violated  every  law  of  God — the  man 
that  had  reddened  his  hands  with  the  blood  of  a  saint — a  man 
that,  having  come  from  the  devil,  was  going  to  the  devil  as  fast 
as  he  could  go — a  man  that  had  married  Eleanor  of  Aquitaine, 
another  man's  wife !  He  came,  and  he  found  in  Ireland  a  hero 
and  a  saint — the  saint  was  St.  Laurence  O'Toole,  the  Arch- 
bishop of  Dublin ;  and  Ireland's  hero  was  the  great  and  grand 
Roderick,  King  of  Connaught,  and  High  King  of  Ireland. 

Then  St.  Laurence  O'Toole,  Archbishop  of  Dublin,  cried  out 
to  the  nation  :  **  To  arms  !  Draw  the  sword  !  The  land  is  in- 
vaded !  "  No  sooner  did  Henry's  myrmidons  land  in  Ireland — 
no  sooner  was  the  voice  of  the  sainted  Archbishop  of  Dublin 
heard,  than  the  sword  of  Roderick  O'Connor  sprang  from  its 
sheath,  and  waved,  bright  and  glorious,  over  the  land.  From 
the  shores  of  the  Western  Ocean  he  marched  to  the  eastern 
coast  of  Ireland.  He  had  around  him  his  army ;  he  rallied  his 
chiefs,  and  they  came.  Strongbow,  with  his  forces,  landed  on 
the  coast  of  Wexford.  Roderick  knew  the  geography  of  his 
country ;  and  he  knew  that,  having  taken  Wexford,  the  proba- 
ble course  of  the  invader  would  be  to  march  over  the  hills  of 
Wicklow  and  the  plains  of  Kildare,  on  to  the  city  of  Dublin ; 
and  therefore  he,  with  his  army,  stood  with  their  swords  in 
their  Celtic  hands,  and  waited  for  the  invader.  But  there  was 
a  traitor  in  Ireland  in  those  days — a  traitor  to  his  God — and 
to  his  country.  The  traitor  to  Ireland,  in  those  days,  was 
Dermot  McMurrough,  the  King  of  Leinster ;  and  he  was  a 
devil  from  hell  in  his  character;  first,  by  treason  to  his  country, 
and  secondly,  by  treason  to  the  sacredness  of  that  marriage-tie 
that  has  always  been  so  inviolably  preserved  in  Ireland.  He 
had  taken  the  wife  of  O'Rourke,  Prince  of  Breffni,  from  her 
husband ;  and  it  speaks  well  for  Ireland — that  Ireland  which 
needed  the  Pope's  policeman,  according  to  Mr.  Froude,  to  keep 
us  in  order — it  speaks  well  for  Ireland  that,  in  the  day  that  one 
man  took  another  man's  wife,  the  whole  nation  rose  up  against 
him  ;  and  all  the  manhood  and  womanhood  in  Ireland  declared 
that  the  land  of  St.  Patrick,  the  island  of  saints,  should  not  af- 


The  Last  Monarch  of  Ireland.  253 

ford  standing-room  for  an  adulterer.  Dermot,  the  accursed, 
was  with  the  Norman  and  Saxon  invaders ;  and  well  he  knew 
that  Ireland's  lion  prince  was  standing  in  the  path,  between  the 
great  capital  of  the  nation  and  the  invaders.  He  stole  a  march 
upon  Roderick  ;  he  came  around  by  the  sea-coast  of  Wexford, 
and  entered  Dublin  secretly.  To  the  amazement  and  indig- 
nation of  the  king,  his  capital  was  taken  before  he  was  aware. 
Now,  what  remained  for  him  ?  Suddenly  he  saw  his  friend, 
the  holy  Archbishop  of  Dublin,  enter  his  camp.  These  two 
met ;  and  never,  perhaps,  since  the  world  was  created,  did 
two  grander  or  greater  souls  meet  than  when  Laurence,  the 
saint,  met  Roderick  O'Connor,  the  Celtic  king,  both  animated 
by  one  desire,  by  one  passion  ;  and  that  passion  and  desire  was 
to  drive  the  Norman  and  the  Saxon  into  the  same  Irish  sea  that 
had  swallowed  up  the  Dane,  the  latest  of  Ireland's  invaders. 
Remember,  O  Irishmen,  that  when  I  mention  Laurence 
O'Toole,  I  am  speaking  to  you  of  a  saint.  Remember  it,  and  if 
any  man  come  and  tell  one  of  you  that,  in  order  to  love  Ireland, 
you  must  doubt  or  discredit  Ireland's  priesthood — I  am  here 
to  tell  you  that  I  am  speaking  of  the  last  of  Ireland's  saints ; 
and  he  came  to  the  camp  of  the  last  of  Ireland's  kings ;  and 
the  burden  of  his  message  was  :  "  Give  me  a  sword  that  I  may 
draw  it  in  defense  of  Ireland's  nationality,  and  scourge  her  in- 
vaders forever  from  her  soil." 

Accordingly,  a  short  time  after  Dublin  was  taken,  St.  Laurence 
O'Toole,  with  Roderick  O'Connor,  the  king,  advanced  upon  Dub- 
lin, and,  according  to  authentic  records,  with  an  army  of  from 
forty  to  sixty  thousand  Irishmen.  They  invested  the  city.  The 
O'Donnell  and  O'Neill,  of  Ulster,  shut  the  invaders  out  from  the 
sea  by  the  side  of  Howth  ;  the  Munster  men,  under  the  O'Briens 
and  the  O'Byrnes,  held  the  sea-coast  at  Kingstown  and  Dal- 
key,  and  shut  the  invaders  out  from  the  sea  on  that  side ;  the 
O'Kinsella  and  his  men  took  up  position  at  Kilmainham  ;  and 
Roderick  O'Connor  occupied  the  site  of  the  present  Phoenix 
Park,  or  Castleknock.  Unhappily,  the  investment  was  not  com- 
plete. Strongbow  was  a  brave  man,  my  friends ;  a  man  whom 
neither  you  nor  I  would  wish  to  meet  upon  the  open  field ; 
brave  as  a  lion,  and  with  the  heart  and  hand  of  a  Norman  warrior, 
I  don't  say  it  because  I  am  of  their  Norman  blood  myself.  No  I 
I  had  rather  have  one  drop  of  my  Celtic  mother's  blood  than  all 


^54  Roderick  O'Connor, 

the  blood  in  my  veins  other  than  Celtic.  But  still  it  cannot  be 
denied  that  these  Normans — clad  in  steel  from  head  to  toe ; 
mounted  upon  their  war-horses,  also  panoplied  in  steel — were 
brave  men  ;  the  bravest,  perhaps,  in  the  world.  There  were  only 
six  hundred  of  them  in  Dublin,  reduced  to  starvation  by  the 
Irish  army,  lying  silent,  in  grim  expectation  of  the  time  when  the 
invaders  would  be  compelled  to  yield.  St.  Laurence  O'Toole, 
according  to  the  historian  Leland,  went  through  the  Irish  ranks 
day  by  day,  holding  up  the  cross  of  Christ,  and  also  girded  with 
a  sword,  which  he  was  prepared  to  draw  as  a  prince  amongst 
his  people.  Pressed  with  famine  and  reduced  to  desperation, 
Strongbow  called  his  Norman  knights  together  and  said  ;  "  The 
enemy  is  scattered  around  the  walls ;  his  line  is  slender,  and 
we  may  easily  break  through  it.  Is  it  not  better  to  die  like  he- 
roes in  the  field,  than  to  starve  here  like  rats  in  a  hole?"  Ar- 
raying his  men  in  full  armor,  he  divided  them  into  three  bodies 
of  about  two  hundred  each  ;  Raymond  le  Gros  taking  command 
of  one,  Miles  de  Cogan  of  another,  and  Strongbow  himself  lead- 
ing the  third ;  they  dashed  right  into  the  midst  of  the  Irish 
army.  The  Celts,  scattered  all  around,  were  taken  completely  by 
surprise.  Not  thinking  of  an  assault,  and  having  no  previous 
warning,  their  lines  were  broken,  and  the  Normans  dashed  right 
through  the  heart  of  the  army,  and  again  dashed  back.  Once 
again  they  charged,  and  the  siege  of  Dublin  was  raised.  The 
chieftains  drew  off  their  men  and  retired.  Roderick  sullenly 
and  reluctantly  withdrew  at  last,  like  a  lion  disappointed  of  his 
prey.  The  grand,  royal  heart  of  Ireland's  monarch  broke  within 
him,  when  he  heard  from  the  lips  of  his  friend  St.  Laurence, 
that  the  invaders  were  not  to  depart  to-day  or  to-morrow,  but 
were  to  remain  for  many  a  sad  year.  "  They  come,"  he  said,  in 
the  language  interpreted  by  Ireland's  latest  poet, — 

"  They  come  to  divide — to  dishonor  ; 
And  tyrants  they  long  shall  remain." 

Oh !  the  vision  that  was  opened  before  him  by  the  saint  of  God 
was  too  much  for  his  heart.  What !  Ireland  dishonored  !  Ire- 
land enslaved!  Ireland  losing  her  nationahty!  He  could  not 
bear  it.  His  heart  broke  within  him ;  and  resigning  crown 
and  sceptre,  he  sought  the  cloister  of  Clonmacnoise,  where  his 
ancestor  died  in  sanctity ;  and  there,  for  twelve  years,  the  man 


The  Last  Monarch  of  Ireland.  255 

who  had  braved  every  disaster  was  to  live  as  a  Canon  Regular 
of  St.  Augustine.  For  twelve  years  he  spent  his  time  in  prayer 
with  God,  for  Ireland's  prosperity  and  safety.  No  longer  a 
king,  enthroned  and  crowned,  he  could  do  no  more  for  Ireland. 
Wisdom  and  strength  were  vain ;  but  he  passed  his  days  in 
sanctity ;  ending  his  life  in  an  aroma  of  prayer  to  God  for  the 
land  that  bore  him. 

His  eldest  son  he  was  obliged  to  send  as  a  hostage  to  the 
English  king;  his  dominions  he  was  obliged  to  hold  under  him, 
not  as  under  the  power  of  a  conqueror  ;  for  never  will  history 
admit  that  Ireland  was  conquered  by  Henry  II.  The  most  that 
Henry  ever  claimed  was  the  acknowledgment  of  superiority, 
then  called  ^' Haiit  Stizerainte'' — that  Ireland,  retaining  her 
independence,  kingship,  and  nationality,  acknowledged  a  nomi- 
nal submission  to  the  crown  of  England.  That  was  all  that 
Henr)'  II.  ever  claimed.  He  treated  with  Roderick  O'Connor 
as  a  king.  Roderick  O'Connor  retired  into  the  cloisters  of  Clon- 
macnoise  and  there  lived  as  a  king  though  a  monk.  He  died  a 
king;  and  on  the  day  when  the  royal  tomb  of  Clonmacnoise 
was  opened  to  receive  him,  he  was  buried  with  kingly  honors. 

If  England,  to-day,  denies  the  right  of  Ireland  to  her  nation- 
ality and  independence,  England  denies  it  by  the  greatest  injus- 
tice, lying,  treachery,  and  tyranny  that  ever  one  people  exer- 
cised over  another.  If  England,  to-day,  claims  more  than  her 
first  kings  did  from  Ireland,  she  claims  it  without  reason  ;  and 
although  she  has  welded  a  chain,  dripping  blood,  over  our  land 
for  seven  hundred  years,  England  has  never  been  able  to  extin- 
guish in  the  Irish  soul  the  proud  and  heroic  feeling  that  we  are 
still  a  nation,  and  shall  be  a  nation  till  the  end  of  time. 

The  body  of  Ireland's  last  monarch  was  laid  in  his  royal 
grave.  The  nation  wept  over  him  ;  and  never,  since  his  day, 
have  we  seen  his  like,  except,  perhaps,  in  the  passing  vision  of 
the  heroic  Hugh  O'Neill  of  Tyrone.  Perchance  the  spirits  of 
the  just  in  heaven  behold  the  things  that  take  place  on  earth. 
If  sorrow  could  enter  there — where  the  chastened  spirit  of  Ire- 
land's last  monarch  is  crowned — Oh  !  saddened  would  be  his 
vision  of  blessedness,  and  chastened  his  eternal  joy,  to  witness 
the  centuries  of  agony,  of  persecution,  of  trial,  and  of  wrong 
that  have  passed  over  his  native  land.  But  one  thing  we  know, 
that  the  spirits  of  the  just  behold  and  appreciate  the  triumph 


256  Roderick  O'Connor. 

of  justice  and  of  truth  upon  this  earth.  Roderick,  brave  was 
thine  arm,  now  mouldered  into  the  dust  of  Ireland ;  brave  was 
the  heart  that  throbbed  in  thy  manly  and  kingly  bosom  with 
love  for  Ireland  !  Roderick  !  thou  hast  seen  our  sorrows  ;  but  I, 
an  Irishman  and  a  priest,  proclaim,  O  Roderick,  that  thou  shalt 
behold  our  resurrection,  our  triumph,  and  our  joy !  It  is  coming. 
The  day  approaches.  O  sainted  king !  it  approaches.  The 
dawn  is  drawing  near;  for  the  sun  of  England  is  setting.  Her 
political  power  is  nearly  gone  ;  her  military  power  is  nothing ; 
her  commercial  power  is  slipping  fast  from  out  her  hands ;  the 
natural  resources  of  her  once  fruitful  bosom  are  beginning  to 
fail ;  the  mother  of  iron  and  coal  is  beginning  to  prove  barren ; 
and  when  England's  iron  and  coal  are  gone,  England's  prestige 
already  gone,  her  political  influence  now  rapidly  on  the  wane, 
what  remains  ?  What  remains,  O  Celts  ?  Oh,  ye  Irish  saints  in 
heaven !  it  remains  for  you  to  behold  the  resurrection  and  the 
glory  of  your  race,  who  have  kept  your  faith,  held  to  your 
national  love,  and  have  never  known  how  to  resign  the  two 
most  glorious  ideas  that  can  fill  the  mind  and  heart  of  man — a 
love  for  God  above  him,  and  for  the  native  land  that  bore  him  ! 


CATHOLICITY  NOT  THE  DANGER, 
BUT  THE  SAFETY  OF  THE  GREAT 
AMERICAN   REPUBLIC. 


[Delivered  in  St.  Mary's  Church,  Perth  Amboy,  N.  J.,  November  7,  1872.] 


DDRESSING,  as  I  have  the  honor  to  do,  an  audience 


of  American  ladies  and  gentlemen,  I  must  begin  by 
reminding  you  that  you  are  a  young  nation  ;  that 
when  you  compare  your  age  with  that  of  other  peo- 
ples and  nations,  you  are  but  as  an  infant  in  swaddling  clothes^ 
whilst  other  nations  are  decrepit  old  men.  Ireland  was  con- 
verted to  Christianity  more  than  one  thousand  years  before 
Christopher  Columbus  was  born.  This  will  give  you  some  idea 
of  the  respective  ages  of  nations  and  of  empires.  Being  thus 
young,  two  things  must  strike  the  observant  and  attentive 
mind  in  looking  at  America.  First,  the  thinking  man  is  sim- 
ply struck  dumb  with  amazement  in  the  face  of  so  much  mate- 
rial and  intellectual  greatness,  the  fruit  of  so  few  years.  You 
are  a  nation  but  of  yesterday;  yet  you  have  outstripped  the 
oldest  races  and  nations  upon  the  earth  in  the  march  of  civiliza- 
tion, in  the  cultivation  of  the  sciences  and  the  arts.  You  are 
but  a  nation  of  yesterday,  and  yet  the  oldest  and  the  most  civ- 
ilized peoples  on  the  face  of  the  earth  not  only  take  from  you 
examples  of  government,  models  of  machinery,  but  even  upon 
great  moral  and  historical  questions,  they  send  their  best,  and 
their  most  enlightened,  and  their  most  learned  sons  to  make  an 
appeal  to  the  intelligence  of  America,  and  vindicate  the  actions 
of  centuries  long  gone  by. 

The  second  thing  that  must  strike  the  attentive  mind,  con 
templating  this  land,  is  that,  great  as  the  progress  has  been- 

17 


258  Catholicity  7iot  the  Danger,  but  the  Safety 

wonderful  as  the  intellectual  and  material  development  is,  there 
are  still  questions,  the  deepest,  the  greatest,  the  most  vital  that 
can  affect  the  life  and  the  future  of  any  people,  that  are  not  yet 
decided  in  America.  Amongst  those,  I  hold  that  the  very 
greatest  is  the  question  of  religion.  There  lies  the  vital  princi- 
ple of  the  source  of  the  people's  life  ;  there  lies  the  great  secret 
of  their  strength,  of  their  energy,  of  their  united  action  ;  there 
lies  the  secret  of  that  spiritual  life  which  must  be  in  a  people 
before  they  can  become  really  great.  For  it  is  not  mere  mate- 
rial prosperity,  and  breadth  of  material  domain,  or  mineral  re- 
sources, or  might  in  arms,  that  make  the  true  life  of  a  people. 
These  are  the  adornments  of  the  life  of  a  people.  But  the 
real  life  of  a  people,  like  the  life  of  a  man — is  the  spiritual  life 
— the  moral  life  that  is  within  them — and  this  depends  entirely 
upon  that  people's  religion.  Is  this  great  religious  question 
settled  in  America  for  ever  and  for  aye  ?  I  was  greatly  struck 
two  or  three  months  ago,  on  reading  an  article  in  a  very  clever 
and  well-conducted  New  York  paper,  which  described  the  vari- 
ous preachers  and  orators  around  that  city,  the  multitude  of 
varying  doctrines  that  they  taught,  the  contradictions  that  one 
gave  to  the  other,  and  then  it  said  :  "  In  the  midst  of  this  hub- 
bub of  religious  controversy,  America  goes  from  one  man  to  an- 
other, looking  for  the  truth."  The  question,  then,  is  not  settled  ; 
and  the  highest  intelligence  of  America  admits  that  this  land  is 
yet  to  choose  its  religion. 

Now,  my  friends,  I  am  a  Catholic  priest ;  and,  naturally  and 
professionally,  I  speak  from  out  of  the  convictions  of  my  mind 
and  my  heart,  of  what  is  called  the  Catholic  religion  ;  and  I 
assert  that  America  is  bound  to  become  Catholic,  and  that 
Catholicity  never  will  be  a  danger,  but  a  true  safety — a  certain 
source  of  greatness — to  this  mighty  land.  First  of  all,  I  hold 
that  the  Catholic  religion  will  be  the  true  safety  of  America. 
Secondly,  I  will  endeavor  to  prove  the  assertion,  that  it  cannot 
by  any  possibility  be  a  source  of  danger  or  of  weakness  to  this 
land. 

What  is  the  first  element  of  the  salvation  of  a  people  ?  What 
is  the  first  great  element  of  a  people's  strength  ?  I  answer,  it 
is  unity.  You  remember  the  familiar  old  adage,  "  Union  is 
strength."  You  know  that  the  Almighty  God  in  heaven  is 
omnipotence  itself.     And  why?     Because  He  is   unity   itself. 


of  the  Great  Americati  Republic.  259 

You  know  that  power  always  goes  hand  in  hand  with  unity. 
You  know  how  jealously  the  nations  endeavor  to  keep  their 
component  elements  together,  and  how  fond  they  are,  in  cases 
of  federal  or  internal  importance,  of  saying,  "  Quis  separabit  ?  " — 
"  Who  shall  break  us  up  or  disunite  us?"  Union  is  strength, 
disunion,  weakness.  I  need  not  give  you  the  history  of  the 
land  that  bore  me,  whose  history  I  know  better  than  that  of 
any  other  people.  There  I  find  a  people  disunited  upon  evel'y 
question  except  one ;  and  on  that  one  question  they  were 
united ;  upon  that  one  question  they  agreed  ;  and  that  was  the 
question  of  Ireland's  Catholicity.  The  finger  of  England  was 
able  to  erase  the  name  of  Ireland  from  the  list  of  the  nations, 
because  Ireland,  as  a  nation,  was  disunited.  The  right  hand 
of  England,  battling  for  three  hundred  years,  has  been  par- 
alyzed, unable  to  shake  or  to  destroy  Ireland's  Catholicity, 
because,  on  the  question  of  religion,  England  encountered  a 
united  people.  When,  therefore,  we  come  to  consider  the  real 
safety  and  greatness  of  a  nation,  the  very  first  thing  to  find 
out  is  some  common  principle  upon  which  you  can  really 
unite. 

It  is  upon  the  principle  of  patriotism  or  love  of  country  that 
States  are  founded.  If  you  have  no  rallying  point ;  if  you  have 
no  idea  upon  which  you  can  gather  up  all  the  scattered  elements 
of  the  nation,  and  unite  them  in  unity  of  thought  and  love,  you 
have  not  even  the  elements  of  a  people.  Amongst  those  grand 
ideas  upon  which  a  nation  rests,  making  millions  and,  perhaps, 
hundreds  of  millions  united  as  one  man,  what  is  the  strongest 
principle  represented?  I  answer,  it  is  the  religious  principle. 
Religion,  a  common  religion  professed  by  all,  that  is  the  strong- 
est central  point  of  unity  that  God  or  man  can  establish  in  the 
heart  of  a  nation.  Why  do  I  say  this  ?  First  of  all,  my  friends, 
because,  if  you  take  any  other  one  point  upon  which  you  seek 
to  unite  a  people,  you  will  find  that  it  cannot  be  compared 
to  the  unity  of  religious  thought.  Let  us  suppose  that  they  are 
united  upon  some  grand  political  platform  ;  the  circumstances 
of  to-morrow  or  the  next  day  may  shake  the  minds  of  many ; 
the  circumstances  may  so  change  that  what  was  patriotism  and 
sound  policy  to-day,  may  become  the  ruin  of  the  nation  to-mor- 
row. Weak  minds  are  shaken  ;  they  are  divided  ;  they  go  off 
into  a  thousand  forms  of  political  belief  with  the  changing  cir- 


2bo  Catholicity  not  the  Danger^  but  the  Safety 

cumstances  of  the  year.  "  A  man  should  stand  to  his  princi- 
ples," you  say.  Certainly  ;  and  be  firm  and  unchangeable  in 
them  ;  but  remember  that  the  greatest  enemy  the  State  ever 
had  is  a  man  who  does  not  know  how  to  adapt  his  conduct,  to 
shape  his  political  action,  by  the  exigencies  of  the  circumstances 
of  the  day. 

Take  any  other  principle  upon  which  you  seek  to  unite  a 
people,  and  you  have  the  elements  of  discord  and  dissension  in 
the  very  heart  of  it,  just  as  the  tint  that  comes  in  autumn  lies 
in  the  heart  of  the  rose,  when  it  opens  in  the  spring  and  in  the 
summer  of  the  year.  There  is  only  one  principle  that  will  never 
change,  that  remains  the  same  forever  and  ever,  to  which  men 
can  always  go,  upon  which  they  can  always  fall  back  as  upon  a 
certain  rallying  point  that  will  never  be  wanting  to  them  ;  like 
the  rock  against  which  the  Roman  of  old  planted  himself,  and 
with  heroic  hand  swept  his  enemies  before  him,  because  the 
rock  was  behind  him  to  protect  him.  This  one  principle  is 
the  principle  of  religious  union.  It  represents  God ;  it  repre- 
sents conscience ;  it  represents  the  affirmation  of  the  will  ;  it 
represents  a  man's  hopes  for  the  eternity  that  lies  before  him. 
These  are  things  that  do  not  change  from  the  circumstances  of 
the  hour ;  and  the  unity  that  springs  from  them  is  like  the 
unity  of  the  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost,  in  heaven  ;  it  is  a 
unity  that  can  never  be  dissevered  or  broken,  but  must  remain 
the  same  forever. 

The  second  reason  why  religious  unity  is  the  strongest  point 
that  can  unite  a  people  is,  that  on  no  other  principle  can  you 
unite  them,  so  as  to  make  that  principle  a  guarantee  of  their 
conduct  and  their  lives.  A  man  may  belong  to  a  political  party. 
When  the  time  comes  for  action,  he  may  get  sulky  and  decline 
to  act  with  the  party,  and  say :  "  I  will  not  vote  at  this  election ; 
I  will  not  make  a  speech  ;  I  will  not  use  my  influence  among 
my  fellow-citizens  ;  I  will  not  tell  them  what  my  sentiments  are." 
And  his  friends  say :  "  He  is  wanting  to  us  in  the  very  hour  of 
our  danger."  Again,  a  man  may  be  subject  to  influences  that 
will  oblige  him  to  draw  back,  and  to  refuse  to  act  with  his  party. 
Unite  men  on  any  principle  that  you  will,  you  are  never  sure  of 
their  acting  up  to  that  principle  until  you  put  the  hand  of  God 
upon  their  conscience ;  until  you  inclose  in  that  religious  grasp 
all  their  future   hopes  ;  until  you  establish  in  their  minds  the 


of  the  Great  American  Republic.  261 

immutable  principle  of  eternal  responsibility  for  thought,  word, 
and  act.  Then,  and  only  then,  have  you  a  guarantee  that  in 
the  hour  of  difficulty,  of  trial,  and  of  danger,  your  man  will  be 
up  to  the  mark,  because  he  will  be  afraid  of  God  if  he  is  not. 

Now,  my  friends,  where,  I  ask  you,  is  this  great  Republic  of 
America  to  find  the  element  of  unity  which  will  be  the  secret 
of  her  mighty  power  and  strength  in  time  to  come,  if  she  re- 
fuses to  become  Catholic  ?  Where  is  it  ?  Some  years  ago,  a 
very  learned  and  distinguished  Englishman,  a  public  lecturer, 
congratulated  the  English  people  upon  the  multitude  of  differ- 
ent churches  and  sects  that  were  in  the  land.  He  said  :  "  I  see 
in  the  small  country  town,  the  Methodist  preaching-house,  the 
Baptist  conventicle,  the  Quaker's  modest,  humble  meeting- 
house, the  old  village  church,  with  its  tower  and  its  peal  of 
bells,  the  Catholic  church,  with  its  cross  and  its  images  around.  I 
rejoice,"  he  said,  "  for  the  multitude  of  these,  and  the  multi- 
plication of  them  shows  how  deep  is  the  religious  principle  in 
the  English  mind,  and  how  fruitful  it  is  in  manifold  forms  of 
religious  worship."  Now,  he  embodied  the  very  first  principle 
of  Protestantism  in  that  remark. 

Remember  that  there  are  two  principles  upon  which  all  relig- 
ion is  based ;  namely,  the  principle  of  authority,  and  the  prin- 
ciple of  a  man's  own  reason  and  judgment.  Every  religion  that 
exists  appeals  either  to  one  or  the  other  of  these.  Every  relig- 
ion either  says  to  man  :  "  Be  as  a  little  child,  submit  your  intel- 
ligence, be  content  to  be  taught ;  when  you  acknowledge  the 
logical  necessity  of  an  authoritative  voice  to  teach  you,  then 
take  the  word  and  obey  it."  Or  it  says  to  him,  "  I  have  no 
authority  ;  you  have  authority;  your  own  judgment,  your  own 
reason  is  the  last,  the  ultimate  tribunal  to  which  I  can  make  my 
appeal  ;  and  whatever  decision  your  own  individual  judgment 
comes  to,  let  that  be  the  corner-stone  and  the  foundation  of 
your  personal  belief."  It  is  one  or  the  other  of  these  two.  One 
is  the  principle  of  Catholicity,  namely,  the  voice  coming  with  a 
divine  commission,  and  saying,  "  Here  I  am,  here  is  my  diplo- 
ma ;  if  you  believe  the  Scriptures,  see  what  it  says  of  me ;  it. 
says  of  me  that  the  gates  of  hell  shall  never  prevail  against  me. 
It  says  that  the  spirit  of  truth  has  come  upon  me  to  remain 
and  to  wrap  me  in  the  truth  forever.  It  says  of  me  that  the 
Son  of  God  Himself  declared  that  He  would  be  with  me  all  days 


262  Catholicity  not  the  Danger,  but  the  Safety 

unto  the  consummation  of  the  world  ;  and  it  also  says  of  me 
that  I  received  from  the  lips  of  the  incarnate  God  the  command 
and  the  commission  to  go  forth  and  to  teach  all  nations.  It 
says,  moreover,  of  me  that,  when  I  lift  up  my  voice  to  teach 
the  nations,  he  that  will  not  hear  that  voice  is,  in  the  sight  of 
the  Son  of  God,  a  heathen  and  a  publican."  These  are  the 
words  of  Scripture  ;  these  are  the  principles  upon  which  Catho- 
licity is  based. 

Now,  as  to  the  authority.  That  is  one  and  only  one,  and 
that  one  principle  of  authority  is  a  divine  commission  and  a 
divine  guarantee  that  no  falsehood  can  ever  enter  into  the  bur- 
den of  the  Church's  teaching.  Therefore,  that  teaching  must 
create  unity.  And,  in  fact,  ask  the  first  Catholic  man  that  you 
meet  any  question  touching  the  faith;  he  will  answer  you  ;  and 
it  is  not  he  that  answers,  but  it  is  two  hundred  millions  of  Cath 
dies  the  world  over  that  speak  in  his  voice.  Ask  the  first  Cath 
olic  child  that  you  meet — "  Is  Christ  present  in  the  Blessed 
Eucharist?"  And  with  the  voice  of  two  hundred  millions 
speaking  as  from  one  man,  he  will  answer,  "  Yes,  He  is  there  as 
truly  as  He  is  at  the  right  hand  of  the  Father  in  heaven." 

On  other  questions  we  are  broken  up.  Where  is  there  a  class 
of  people  more  disunited  than  we  Catholics  are  on  every  ques- 
tion ?  Every  man  has  perfect  liberty.  I  may  be  at  home  in  Ire- 
land a  Whig  or  a  Tory,  and  you  may  be  here  a  Republican,  or 
Liberal-Republican,  or  Democrat.  Every  man  is  at  liberty. 
We  are  broken  up  into  national  sections,  and  there  is  a  great 
deal  of  national  antipathy,  and  Catholics  in  Ireland  have  no 
great  liking  for  Catholics  in  England.  The  French  that  were 
fighting  last  year,  and  the  Bavarians  that  were  fighting  against 
them,  were  both  Catholics ;  and  there  they  were,  putting  each 
other  to  death.  Divided  by  national  interests,  or  philosophic 
and  historic  ideas,  etc.,  as  we  are,  the  moment  we  fall  back  upon 
religion  every  solitary  Catholic  in  the  world,  that  knows  his  re- 
ligion, represents  two  hundred  millions  in  the  world.  In  other 
words,  there  is  a  perfect  unity  of  thought,  of  faith,  and  practice 
in  religion.  How  grand  is  this !  Is  there  anything  like  it  in  the 
world  ?  What  is  the  religion  that  revolted  against  the  Catholic 
Church  and  refused  to  adopt  this  principle  ?  It  is  an  appeal 
made  to  the  private  judgment  and  the  personal  intelligence  of 
every  man.     Now,  I  am  going  to  say  a  strong  thing.     I  shall 


of  the  Great  American  Republic.  263 

defy  any  man  living  to  find  for  me  in  the  Scriptures,  from  the 
first  chapter  in  Genesis  to  the  last  chapter  in  the  Apocalypse, 
one  sentence  in  which  Almighty  God  can  be  proved  to  have 
said  that  the  private  judgment  of  man  is  to  be  the  standard  of 
his  religion.  Everywhere  it  is  authority.  In  the  Old  Testa- 
ment it  is  :  "  Thus  saith  the  Lord."  This  was  the  word  on  the 
lips  of  every  prophet :  "  Hear,  O  Israel ;  thus  saith  the  Lord  of 
Hosts."  In  the  New  Testament  it  is  the  same.  It  is  still  au- 
thority; it  is  authority  everywhere.  "Whatever  the  Father 
hath  told  Me,  that  I  have  told  you,"  says  Christ  to  his  apostles. 
"As  the  Father  sent  Me  with  power  so  do  I  send  you."  "  I 
am  the  light  of  the  world — Ego  sum  lux  mundi.  Ye  also  are 
the  salt  of  the  earth."  So  do  we  find  that  nowhere  in  the 
Scriptures  is  the  fallible,  changeable  judgment  or  reason  of  man 
made  to  be  the  standard  of  divine  truth. 

Now,  the  principle  on  which  every  religion,  outside  of  the 
Catholic  Church,  is  based,  is  that  changeable  standard.  Here  is 
a  book,  the  Bible — the  most  difficult  book  that  ever  was  printed  ; 
a  book  which,  in  itself,  tells  us  that  the  unwary  and  unstable 
will  pervert  it  to  their  own  destruction.  Take  this  book  and 
find  your  religion  in  it,  and  whatever  interpretation  you  put 
upon  these  given  passages — those  truths  which  have  puzzled 
so  many  theologians  and  philosophers — that  is  to  be  your  re- 
ligion !  What  follows  from  this?  As  many  religions  as  there 
are  minds  to  interpret  the  written  word  of  the  Bible  without  a 
guide. 

I  remember  once  a  poor  man  in  Ireland  saying  to  me  :  "  Your 
Reverence,  tell  me  how  many  different  religions  are  there  out- 
side of  the  Catholic  Church?"  "  Well,"  I  said,  "  I  don't  know, 
but  I  imagine  there  must  be  nearly  a  hundred  different  forms 
of  Protestantism."  "Is  that  all,  sir?"  said  he.  "  Well,  that 
beats  me  completely.  Your  Reverence,  I  always  thought  that 
there  ought  to  be  a  distinct  form  of  Protestant  religion  for 
every  single  man  that  read  the  Bible  and  professed  to  interpret 
it."     And  he  was  right. 

Do  you  not  perceive  at  once  that  there  is  the  principle  of 
disunion  ?  To  multiply  religious  tests,  to  multiply  religious  tri- 
bunals, according  to  the  judgment  of  each  man,  is  the  very 
principle  upon  which  Protestantism,  in  the  widest  sense,  rests. 
I  grant  you  that  at  first  sight   it  seems  eminently  intellectual. 


264  Catholicity  not  the  Danger^  but  the  Safety 

I  am  not  a  bigot.  I  grant  you  that  at  first  sight  it  seems  the 
grandest  act  of  homage  that  was  ever  paid  to  the  intellect  of 
man  to  put  into  his  hands  the  most  difficult  documents  that 
have  come  down  upon  the  stream  of  time,  and  to  say  :  "  You  are 
able  to  interpret  them  ;  do  it."  But  I  hold  that  in  the  day  that 
that  word  was  said  to  the  human  intelligence,  there  was  a  duty 
imposed  upon  the  intellect  of  man  to  which  that  intellect  was 
totally  unequal.  There  was  a  load  put  upon  the  mind  of  man 
that  no  human  mind  unaided  can  bear.  God  has  given  us  in- 
telligencers-extensive, profound,  clear,  and  intuitive — for  natural 
truths;  and  in  this  horizon  of  natural  truths — embracing  all  the 
sciences,  all  the  arts — the  mind  of  man  is  at  home,  is  perform- 
ing its  own  functions  in  disputing  about  all  these  things,  and 
following  out  the  grain  of  historic  or  scientific  truth.  But  the 
moment  it  is  a  question  of  revealed  truth,  that  transcends  the 
human  mind  ;  the  moment  it  is  a  question  of  knowing  the  truth, 
not  of  the  things  of  earth,  but  of  those  things  that  eye  hath 
not  seen  nor  hath  ear  heard,  neither  hath  it  entered  into  the 
heart  of  man  to  conceive — that  moment,  if  God  does  not  come 
to  the  rescue,  by  revelation  and  by  authority,  the  human  mind 
will  make  as  great  a  failure  as  if  you  called  upon  a  man  born 
blind  to  give  you  a  description  of  the  rising  sun. 

Now,  my  friends,  one  or  the  other  of  these  two  principles 
lies  before  America.  In  one,  namely,  in  Catholicity,  this 
mighty  nation  finds  one  grand,  magnificent,  and  vast  principle 
of  unity,  which  means  strength.  In  the  other,  upon  the  most 
vital  question  of  religion,  the  people  are  divided.  It  is  a  strange 
and  significant  fact  that  out  of  that  religious  disunion  spring  dis- 
union and  dissension  upon  every  social  and  political  question 
almost  in  our  daily  life.  Who  can  doubt  it  ?  Are  there  not 
Irish  Protestants,  for  instance,  celebrating  the  "  Battle  of  the 
Boyne,"  in  which  Irish  blood  was  spilled,  and  because  of  which 
the  Irish  Catholic  that  day  was  weeping?  It  is  a  political  and 
historical  question.  Why,  then,  do  these  two  men  of  the  same 
race  and  blood  take  such  widely  different  views  upon  it ;  one 
exulting,  the  other  weeping?  Because  one  is  a  Catholic  and  the 
other  a  Protestant.  Why,  on  the  anniversary  of  St.  Patrick's 
day — because  that  Ireland  first  saw  light  through  him — why  do 
Irish  Catholics  parade  with  cannons  and  drums,  and  sometimes, 
perhaps,  making  too  much  noise — whilst  another  class  of  Irish- 


of  the  Great  American  Republic.  265 

men  would  be  only  too  happy  to  be  let  out  with  guns  and 
revolvers  to  fire  at  the  procession  ?  Is  it  not  a  great  fact 
that  this  man  came  and  evangelized  us  ?  Then,  why  do 
men  take  such  different  views  of  a  historic  fact?  Because 
one  is  a  Protestant  and  the  other  a  Catholic.  And  if  the 
principle  of  Protestantism  is  to  become  the  grand  principle 
of  religion  in  America,  then  in  this  mighty  land  the  effort  of 
the  patriot,  the  grand  designs  of  the  statesman,  the  conflict 
of  the  warriors,  will  be  marred,  neutralized,  ruined,  by  the  prin- 
ciple of  dissension  that  lies  at  the  very  source  of  the  spiritual 
life  of  the  people. 

Even  at  this  day,  if  any  line  of  imperial  policy  is  marked  out 
for  America,  or  for  England,  or  for  Germany,  or  for  any  other 
divided  country,  half  Protestant  and  half  Catholic ;  if  any  line 
of  policy  is  marked  out,  in  which,  if  the  nation  had  the  courage 
to  strike  out  boldly  and  fearlessly,  great  emoluments  would  be 
the  result,  the  first  thing  a  statesman  says  is.  How  will  the  Cath- 
olic view  it,  and  how  will  the  Protestant  view  it  ?  What  sup- 
port am  I  to  command  from  one  and  from  the  other  ?  Do  not 
the  cabinets  in  those  divided  countries  constantly  lament  with 
the  English  statesman,  who  said  :  "  The  real  difficulty  in  my 
position  as  Premier  of  England  is,  that  I  have  no  will  over  a 
people  who  are  antagonistic  on  every  question  because  they  are 
divided  on  religion."  Think  you,  gentlemen,  that  the  keen, 
shrewd,  high,  clear  intelligence  of  America  is  going  to  commit 
itself  forever  and  forever  to  such  an  anomaly  as  this?  No. 
These  dissensions  and  religious  divisions  have  always  been 
brought  forward  in  seasons  of  trouble,  when  men  did  not  reason, 
but  allowed  their  passions  to  overcome  them.  America  reasons 
well,  reasons  shrewdly ;  and  all  that  the  Catholic  Church  has  to  do 
is  to  manifest  her  historical  truths,  and  bring  home  to  the  convic- 
tion and  intelligence  of  this  mighty  land  the  reasonableness  of 
her  devotion,  the  grandeur  and  logic  of  her  faith  ;  and,  as  sure 
as  God  gave  America  that  mind,  which  is  His  gift,  so  sure  will 
the  day  come,  and  soon  come,  when  the  magnificent  garb  of 
religious  unity  and  of  Catholic  faith  shall  fall  upon  the  imperial 
shoulders  of  America. 

Secondly,  "  Catholicity  is  the  safety  of  the  great  Republic," 
when  we  reflect  that,  next  to  a  strong,  abiding,  unchangeable 
principle   of  unity,   the    great  secret   of  a   people's   life,   and 


266  Catholicity  not  the  Danger,  but  the  Safety 

strength,  and  safety,  is  some  agency — some  organization  or 
other  that  will  bring  honesty  and  morality  home  to  every 
man  in  the  land — not  only  with  the  command  of  a  precept, 
but  also  with  a  penalty  for  their  transgression.  Remember,  my 
friends,  that  we  are  so  constituted,  that  although  we  may  see  a 
thing  in  its  proper  light,  may  acknowledge  its  just  weight,  yet 
we  fail  of  acting  according  to  our  convictions  because  of  our 
weakness,  because  of  our  inherent  misery.  How  few  men  there 
are,  in  this  world,  whose  actions  and  whose  daily  life  correspond 
with  their  theories  and  ideas  of  what  is  right  and  what  is  wrong. 
Is  there  a  man  amongst  us  that  can  kneel  down  at  the  close  of  any 
day  of  his  life,  and  question  himself  before  his  God  and  before  his 
conscience :  "  Have  I  to-day — in  every  thought,  word,  and  act 
of  my  life — have  I  lived  up  to  my  conviction  and  knowledge  of 
what  is  right  and  what  is  wrong?"  There  is  scarcely  a  man 
amongst  us  that  will  not  be  obliged  to  say,  every  day  of  his 
life :  "  I  have  been  wanting  in  more  things  than  one."  Is  it 
want  of  knowledge  of  what  is  right  or  wrong?  No.  It  is 
from  want  of  a  sufficient  pressure  put  upon  us.  The  right 
must  be  forced  upon  us ;  the  wrong  must  come  before  us,  not 
only  as  a  thing  that  is  forbidden,  but  as  a  thing  that  is  for- 
bidden under  a  penalty — by  a  penal  law.  Look  at  the  State, 
for  instance.  The  State  in  its  legislation  appeals  to  the  in- 
telligence of  every  citizen,  and  says:  "  It  is  a  wrong  thing  to 
steal ;  it  is  right  to  be  honest."  Does  the  State  content  itself 
with  that  ?  No,  my  friends ;  it  says :  "  It  is  a  wrong  thing 
to  steal.  Now,  if  you  steal,  I  will  put  you  into  jail."  In 
other  words,  the  right  is  forced  upon  us  by  the  legislation  of 
our  country  ;  and  the  wrong  is  prohibited,  not  only  by  precept, 
but  by  punishment. 

Now,  the  next  great  element  of  a  people's  salvation,  is  some 
powerful  organization  appealing  to  the  conscience — appealing 
to  our  inner  soul,  and  the  heart  of  every  individual  man,  and 
urging  upon  that  man  public  and  personal  morality  and  hon- 
esty, and  urging  it  so  that,  if  he  violate  one,  or  forget  the  other, 
that  organization,  or  that  law,  will  come  down  upon  him,  and 
punish  him  ;  for  it  is  by  the  dread  of  punishment,  as  well  as  by 
the  hope  of  reward,  that  we  are  actuated  in  avoiding  what  is 
wrong  and  doing  what  is  right.  Wherever  religion  is,  it  must 
bring  this  power,  or  it  is  worthless.     I  ask  you,  where   is  this 


of  the  Great  American  Republic.  267 

power?     Where  is  the  power  that  prohibits  a  wrong  by  a  penal 
law,  except  in  the  Catholic  Church  ? 

A  Protestant  man,  honorable,  high-minded,  a  first-class  citi- 
zen, sees  an  opening  before  him  to  do  "a  smart  thing."  He 
can  make  twenty  thousand  dollars  by  it.  It  is  not  a  very  fair 
transaction  ;  there  is  a  twist  in  it ;  there  is  something  in  it  that 
he  knows  is  not  right ;  but  then  twenty  thousand  dollars !  and 
nobody  is  the  wiser.  He  does  the  thing  and  he  makes  the 
money.  Conscience  tells  him  that  it  is  wrong.  There  is  no 
power  to  urge  the  wrong  upon  him  as  a  penal  law.  The  Catho- 
lic does  the  same  thing;  but  while  he  does  it,  the  thought  in  his 
mind  is  :  "  Oh,  this  will  never  do  ;  when  I  go  to  confession,  I 
will  have  to  tell  all  this.  And  the  worst  of  it  is  that  the  priest 
will  make  me  give  back  every  cent  of  it.  If  I  am  dying,  and 
send  for  him,  he  won't  lay  his  hand  over  me,  or  give  me  com- 
munion, or  extreme  unction,  until  he  has  first  the  draft  of  resti- 
tution." Give  back  he  must  every  cent.  A  Protestant  man 
gets  angry  with  his  neighbor,  and  in  his  anger  he  says  :  "  That 
is  a  dishonest  and  disreputable  fellow."  He  goes  out  and  says 
things,  and  injures,  and,  perhaps,  ruins  the  man's  good  name 
and  character.  He  is  very  sorry  for  it  afterwards ;  and  when  he 
has  said  before  God  :  "  I  am  sorry  that  I  have  injured  my  neigh- 
bor," there  is  an  end  to  it ;  he  thinks  no  more  is  necessary. 
The  Catholic  man  knows  that  he  must  first  break  his  heart  with 
sorrow  for  saying  that  unkind  word ;  and  when  he  has  made 
restitution  to  his  God,  he  has  to  go  out  and  say  to  his  neighbor : 
"  Do  you  remember  the  day  when  I  said  such  and  such  a  fellow 
was  a  blackguard  ? "  "  Oh,  yes,  I  remember  it  very  well." 
"Well,  I  told  a  lie  that  day;  I  was  the  blackguard  myself." 
Now,  people  of  America,  I  ask  you  to  consider  this  great  point. 
If  the  intelligence  of  America  would  only  condescend  to  weigh 
the  Catholic  Church  and  Catholic  morality  on  their  own  merits, 
the  mind  of  America  would  be  the  most  Catholic  of  any  in  the 
whole  world. 

The  third  great  element  of  the  safety,  security,  and  the 
strength  of  a  people  is  the  sanctity  of  the  marriage  tie  ;  the 
sanctity  inviolable  ;  the  sanctity  so  great  that  no  hand  in  heaven, 
or  earth,  or  hell  can  touch  it  to  break  it,  except  the  hand  of  the 
angel  of  death.  I  say  this  is  the  third  great  element  of  the 
people's  safety.     And  why  ?     Because  of  the  inviolable  fidelity 


268  Catholicity  not  the  Danger,  but  the  Safety 

of  the  marriage  tie,  binding  the  husband  and  the  wife,  in  not 
only  the  strongest  human  bond  of  love,  but  the  strongest  sacra- 
mental bond  of  union,  upon  which,  as  it  were,  one  drop  of  the 
blood  of  Jesus  Christ  falls  in  the  sacrament  of  matrimony,  to 
seal  it  so  that  it  cannot  be  dissolved ;  upon  it  depends  the  pro- 
creation of  children,  so  that  the  State  may  have  citizens ;  and 
the  education  of  children,  so  that  the  State  may  have  worthy 
citizens. 

A  multitude  of  people  are  no  blessing  unless  that  multitude 
be  educated,  so  as  to  bring  out  in  them  their  intellectual,  moral, 
and  spiritual  existence.  To  do  that,  the  mother  must  be  secure 
of  her  position.  She  must  be  the  queen  in  her  own  house. 
From  that  throne  upon  which  the  Church  of  God  seated  her  in 
the  day  when  she  sealed  the  matrimonial  contract — from  that 
throne,  no  hand  in  heaven,  on  earth,  or  in  hell,  must  be  allowed 
to  drag  that  woman  down.  If  she  is  not  secure  with  the  secu- 
rity of  the  sacrament — with  the  security,  that  is  to  say,  of  God 
— the  very  fountain  of  matrimonial  love  is  poisoned,  and  the 
very  source  of  all  domestic  happiness  is  embittered.  How  can 
a  woman  love  with  all  her  heart  a  man  if  she  believes  it  is  in 
that  man's  power  to  repudiate  her ;  to  put  her  forth  an  exile, 
and  an  outcast  from  her  house ;  to  separate  her  from  her  chil- 
dren, and  drive  her  away  from  home,  when  his  eye  has  become 
fascinated  with  another  and  a  more  handsome  face  and  form  than 
hers  ? — how  can  she  love  him  ?  The  children,  too,  depend  alto- 
gether upon  the  mother.  All  that  is  to  be  brought  out,  of  God 
or  man,  in  that  young  soul,  must  be  brought  out  by  the  moth- 
er's hand.  The  father  is  engaged  in  his  business,  and  is  always 
from  home  ;  and  he  is  toiling  all  the  week  ;  and  when  he  comes 
home,  it  is  not  for  domestic  care,  but  for  domestic  bliss.  The 
mother's  duty  and  business  is  at  home.  Under  her  hand  the 
child  must  grow — the  child  which  is  "father  to  the  man  " — as 
Jesus  of  Nazareth  grew  under  the  hand  of  Mary.  If  that  moth- 
er is  not  secure  of  her  position — if  that  mother  may  be  calum- 
niated and  disgraced  before  any  tribunal  in  the  land,  and  then, 
with  the  divorce  paper  in  hand,  sent  out  into  the  wide  world,  a 
discarded  wife,  and  a  childless  mother,  what  confidence  have 
you  then  for  the  family  ?  Who  will  care  for  the  children  ?  Who 
will  educate  them  ? 

My  friends,  the  day  that  modern  society  admitted  the  divorce, 


of  the  Great  American  Republic.  269 

modern  society  did  what  Samson  did  in  the  temple  of  the  Phi- 
listines— a  mighty  edifice,  magnificent  in  all  its  proportions, 
crowded  with  all  the  nobility  of  the  Philistines.  Turning  to 
his  servant,  he  said  :  "  Bring  me  over,  and  let  me  put  my  arms 
around  the  pillars."  He  was  brought  over  to  the  two  massive 
pillars  on  which  the  mighty  edifice  stood.  He  cast  his  strong 
and  athletic  arms  around  them  ;  he  swayed  his  great  chest  to 
and  fro  ;  they  tottered  and  trembled  under  his  grasp  ;  till,  with 
a  crash  like  the  thunder  of  God,  down  came  the  whole  building; 
and  every  man  there,  the  Israelite  leader  himself  included,  was 
destroyed  in  the  ruins.  Modern  society,  in  the  day  that  it  ad- 
mitted the  law  of  divorce,  shook  its  own  pillars  and  founda- 
tions ;  and  if  there  were  not  a  Catholic  Church  to  uphold  the 
falling  edifice,  the  whole  concern  would  come  tumbling  about 
your  ears.  You  would  be  reduced,  by  that  very  act,  to  the  first 
forms  of  barbarism  and  savagery,  out  of  which  modern  civiliza- 
tion has  come. 

Now,  do  you  imagine,  my  friends,  that  the  womanhood  of 
America — to  say  nothing  of  the  manhood — so  intellectual,  so 
well  educated,  and,  you  will  pardon  me  for  saying  it,  so  anxious 
to  assert  their  rights — do  you  imagine  that  the  womanhood  of 
America  will  allow  this  divorce  business  to  continue?  No  ;  no  ! 
The  woman  must  be  the  crowned  queen  in  her  own  house  ;  and 
no  hand,  save  the  hand  of  death,  must  be  allowed  to  pluck  that 
crown  from  her  head.  The  woman,  in  her  household,  must 
be  the  empress  of  her  home  and  her  children.  The  man  whom 
she  has  honored  by  her  love,  must  not  only  be  the  provider  of 
her  daily  bread,  but  must  do  her  the  homage  that  he  swore  to 
her  at  the  altar  of  matrimony.  And  as  the  Catholic  Church 
assures  to  the  women  of  America  this  social  position  and  un- 
shaken privilege,  if  there  is  nothing  else  to  make  America 
Catholic,  the  ladies  of  America  will  do  it.  They  will  do  it  in 
self-defense. 

When  that  law  of  divorce  was  established  in  England,  I  hap- 
pened to  be  in  Rome,  and  a  Protestant  lady,  engaged  to  a 
Protestant  English  gentleman,  was  in  Rome  at  the  time.  She 
heard  a  sermon  of  mine  on  these  questions  of  marriage  and 
divorce  ;  and  she  said  :  "  I  am  bound  to  become  a  Catholic  out 
of  self-respect  and  in  self-defense;"  and  she  wrote  that  very  day 
to  release  herself  from  her  engagement  to  her  Protestant  lover, 


270  Catholicity  not  the  Danger  but  the  Safety 

and  said  :  "My  dear  friend,  if  you  will  become  a  Catholic,  and 
will  share  with  me  the  belief  of  the  inviolable  tie  of  marriage, 
I  will  marry  you  ;  but  if  you  do  not  do  this,  if  you  remain  in  a 
religion  which  makes  divorce  possible,  I  cannot  marry  you." 

The  women  of  America  will  do  it  if  the  manhood  refuse. 
But  the  manhood  will  not  refuse.  For  the  gentleman  of  Amer- 
ica knows  that  to  restrain  passion  and  to  enforce  the  sacrament 
of  matrimony  by  penal  law,  and  to  make  the  man  atone  for 
the  sin  he  commits,  is  as  necessary  as  the  marriage  tie.  So, 
out  of  both  great  sources  of  society,  I  hold  that  the  future  of 
America  must  be  Catholic.  And  if  the  day  ever  comes,  that 
this  mighty  nation,  flinging  aside  all  this  miserable  discussion 
on  what  Mr.  So-and-so  thinks  about  such  and  such  a  text  of 
Scripture,  and  what  Mr.  This  and  That  thinks  about  such  another 
text — as  if  it  mattered  a  farthing  what  he  says  about  the  Scrip- 
ture if  he  is  not  inspired  by  God — when  that  day  comes,  and 
these  glorious  principles  shall  assert  their  dignity  and  majesty, 
terrible  will  be  the  strength  of  America  in  that  day  ;  when,  for 
all  material  and  national  purposes,  the  government  of  the  land 
will  know  that  the  people,  in  millions  or  hundreds  of  millions, 
are  with  them  like  a  unit,  like  one  man  ;  when  the  national 
councils  will  be  undismayed  by  the  religious  question  ;  when, 
wherever  the  interests  of  America  are  concerned,  and  wherever 
truth,  and  justice,  and  law  are  to  be  vindicated,  the  country 
will  be  enabled  to  draw  that  mighty  sword  with  a  certain  and 
unhesitating  hand,  and  with  a  united  blow  strike  for  God  in 
heaven,  and  for  the  highest  interests  of  man  upon  earth. 

But,  our  friends  who  are  not  Catholics  say  :  "This  is  all  very 
fine ;  this  priest  shows  us  the  advantages  very  well ;  but  what 
about  the  danger?"  We  constantly  hear,  "Beware  of  the 
Papists!  beware  of  the  Catholics!  slavery!  slavery!"  Is 
Catholicity  slavery?  Listen.  On  every  question  outside  of 
the  religious  question — the  question  of  faith — we  are  as  free  as 
our  fellow-citizens,  and  free  to  take  this  side  or  that  in  politics, 
or  free  to  take  this  form  or  that  form  of  government,  or  free  to 
express  our  opinions  upon  every  question,  outside  of  the  relig 
ious  question.  And  why  are  we  not  free  on  the  religious  ques- 
tion ?  For  the  simple  reason  that  we  know  what  the  Church 
teaches ;  and  we  know  that  to  be  the  truth,  and  we  do  not  feel 
ourselves  free  to  contradict  the  truth.     This  is  the  only  reason. 


of  the  Great  American  Republic.  271 

And  is  that  slavery,  when  a  man  feels  that  he  is  not  at  liberty 
to  contradict  what  he  knows  to  be  the  truth  ?  Is  there  a  man 
here  now  listening  to  me,  who  would  be  capable  of  telling  a 
deliberate  lie,  and  contradicting  what  he  knew  to  be  true  ? 
You  would  say,  "  I  cannot  do  it.  I  know  that  I  would  be  telling 
a  lie  if  I  did."  Then  if  a  man  came  to  you  and  said  :  "You 
cannot  do  it ;  you  are  a  slave,"  you  would  say :  "  No,  I  am 
free ;  for  the  supremacy  of  liberty  is  so  to  appreciate  the  truth 
as  to  be  incapable  of  contradicting  it." 

What  was  the  definition  of  freedom  that  came  from  the  lips 
of  our  divine  Lord.  I  am  sure  that  every  man  that  believes  in 
Christ,  will  admit  that  He  is  the  best  authority  when  He  gives 
a  definition  of  freedom.  Here  are  His  words  :  "  You  shall 
know  the  truth,  and  the  truth  shall  make  you  free."  The 
knowledge  of  the  truth  is  freedom,  according  to  Christ — the 
best  authority  that  I  can  give  you — the  God  who  made  us — the 
God  who  redeemed  us  ;  the  knowledge  of  the  truth  is  freedom. 
I  will  prove  it  to  you.  Suppose  that  you  were  all  Protestants,  and 
that  I  was  a  Protestant  minister — the  Lord  between  us  and  harm! 
— and  that  I  came  here  to  speak  to  you  on  a  religious  question 
which  I  had  been  studying  for  the  last  five  years  or  more,  until 
my  brain  became  a  little  crazy  on  it.  For  instance,  I  had  come 
to  the  conclusion  that  the  Gospel  was  a  myth,  and  that  there 
never  was  such  a  person  as  our  Lord  at  all  ;  that  having  read 
what  Voltaire  said,  and  what  Spinoza  said,  and  what  somebody 
else  said,  and  thinking  what  historical  works  have  been  con- 
tradicted, I  said  :  "  Why  should  not  the  Gospel  be  contradicted  ?  " 
and  I  come  to  the  conclusion  that  the  whole  thing  is  a  humbug; 
and  I  come  before  you  this  evening,  and  you  are  all  Protestants, 
and  supposing  me  to  be  an  eloquent  man,  with  great  powers 
of  persuasion  ;  and  I  began  to  tell  you  the  whole  Gospel  was  a 
lie  ;  and  I  denied  Jesus  over  and  over  ;  and  I  hammered  upon 
it  with  energy  of  action,  with  splendid  diction,  with  beauty  of 
illustration,  with  poetic  imagery,  until,  at  last,  I  persuaded  half 
of  the  people  who  were  listening  ;  and  you  said  :  "  It  is  true  ; 
the  man  is  speaking  truth  ;  the  Gospel  is  a  humbug  !  "  Now,  I 
ask,  what  defense  would  you  have  for  your  religion  against  my 
eloquence  and  persuasiveness  ?  None  whatever ;  because  it 
has  been  a  question  of  what  is  true  and  what  is  false,  and  you 
cannot  tell  yourself  which  is  right. 


2'J2  Catholicity  not  the  Danger  but  the  Safety 

But  I  may  be  a  Catholic;  and  I  come  to  you  and  preach  to 
you,  and  as  long  as  I  am  speaking  of  any  question  connected 
with  the  Church,  you  hear  me ;  and  if  I  bring  it  out  forcibly, 
and  if  I  illustrate  it  beautifully,  you  are  delighted.  But  suppose 
I  just  let  slip  a  word  against  the  Catholic  faith ;  suppose  I  gave 
a  hint  that  Christ  was  not  present  in  the  Eucharist ;  or  gave  a 
hint  that  the  priest  could  not  forgive  sin,  every  Catholic  would 
rise  up  and  say:  "  Unmantle  him!"  Every  Catholic  would 
rise  up  and  shut  his  ears,  and  say :  "  No  more  of  this  ;  that's  a 
lie !  "  What  is  it  that  saves  a  Catholic  from  the  most  terrible 
form  of  tyranny  that  can  be  exercised,  namely,  the  tyranny  of 
a  superior  intellect  trying  to  oppress  a  lower?  What  is  it  that 
saves  you  from  this  ?  It  is  the  fact  that  you  know  the  truth. 
You  would  say  to  him :  "  I  know  what  the  Catholic  Church 
teaches ;  and  she  is  wiser  than  either  you  or  I.  You  are  con- 
tradicting her  now ;  and  you  are  a  liar  !  "  Therefore,  Catholi- 
city is  not  slavery.  It  is  the  highest  and  the  grandest  form  of 
intellectual  freedom,  if  freedom  be — as  Christ  declares  it  is — the 
knowledge  of  the  truth. 

The  next  great  difficulty  is,  "  Ah  !  if  America  become  Catho- 
lic, you  priests  and  bishops,  you  will  have  a  good  time  of  it 
then.  You  have  a  knack  of  increasing  and  multiplying ;  and 
we  should  have  the  whole  country  overspread  with  priests  ; 
nothing  but  priests  ;  it  will  be  old  Italy  over  again  ;  a  priest  in 
every  house  ;  a  priest  sticking  his  nose  into  every  man's  busi- 
ness ;  a  priest  laying  hold  of  this,  that,  and  the  other."  My 
friends,  there  is  nothing  easier  than  to  get  up  a  cry  against  a 
man,  or  a  body  of  men.  And  as  a  Quaker  gentleman  once 
said :  "  You  might  as  well  hang  a  dog  at  once  as  to  give  him  a 
bad  name."  What  is  easier  than  to  say  of  a  dog  that  is  going 
across  the  street,  that  the  dog  is  mad,  and  if  you  cry  "  Mad 
dog,  mad  dog,"  you  would  have  a  crowd  at  the  unfortunate 
animal's  heels,  and  they  would  run  him  to  death.  Pretty 
much  like  this  mad  dog  case  is  the  cry,  "  Priest,  priest!  "  Now, 
I  put  the  question  this  way.  First  of  all,  the  priest  is  by  edu- 
cation a  gentleman.  I  don't  care  what  he  is  by  birth.  He  must 
learn  so  much  of  Latin  and  Greek,  and  philosophy  and  his- 
tory. So  that  by  education  he  must  be  a  gentleman.  Now,  no 
gentleman  pokes  his  nose  into  other  people's  business.  I  have 
been  for  above  twenty  years  a  priest,  and  I  never  yet  crossed 


of  the  Great  American  Republic.  273 

the  threshold  of  any  man's  house  without  being  first  invited. 
I  waited  until  I  was  asked.  I  will  tell  you  what  is  more  ;  as  a 
rule,  the  priest  has  to  be  invited  oftener,  and  pressed  harder 
than  any  other  man  before  he  goes,  because  he  has  a  good  deal 
to  do,  and  cannot  afford  to  lose  time. 

Again,  it  is  said,  "  Oh,  but  you'll  gather  up  all  the  money  in 
the  country  ;  you  will  beggar  us  all.  If  America  were  Roman 
Catholic,  you  would  have  the  bishops  and  priests  rolling  in 
money,  nothing  but  gold  and  silver  and  greenbacks  would  it  be ; 
we  want  nothing  to  do  with  them."  Listen,  again,  my  friends. 
The  Catholic  Church  in  her  religious  orders  obliges  every  man, 
before  she  raises  him  to  the  priesthood,  to  swear  a  solemn  oath 
of  poverty,  that  he  will  never  lay  his  hand  upon  so  much  as  one 
cent,  and  say :  "  I  want  this  for  myself"  That  vow  I  made 
twenty-five  years  ago.  I  have  been  in  the  way  of  making  money 
as  much  as  any  man.  One  cent  I  could  not  take  and  say,  "  This 
is  mine,  I  will  take  it  for  myself."  If  I  did  that  I  would  be 
guilty  of  sin.  And  all  that  you  have  to  do  is  to  multiply  the 
cents,  until  you  get  three  or  four  dollars,  and  that  would  make 
a  mortal  sin,  and  would  send  me  to  hell  for  all  eternity. 

We  hear  a  great  deal  about  the  wonderful  wealth  of  the  bish- 
ops and  priests  ;  yet  when  we  come  to  know  the  truth,  they  are 
as  poor  as  Job — men  who  might  be  rich  through  ability,  educa- 
tion, and  talent,  if  they  had  lived  for  themselves  in  many  of 
the  walks  of  life.  "  Oh!  Father,"  some  men  have  said  to  me,, 
•'  if  we  had  you  among  us  at  the  Bar,  you  would  make  a  skillful 
lawyer."  And  I  was  once  told  by  a  comedian,  "  Oh !  Father 
Tom,  you  mistook  your  vocation  ;  if  you  had  gone  on  the  stage 
you  would  have  made  a  fortune  long  since."  And  yet  I  am  as 
poor  as  Job.  And  there  is,  not  a  hundred  miles  from,  this  plat- 
form on  which  I  stand,  a  bishop,  who  has  brains  and  intellect 
and  education  that  might  have  lifted  him  to  the  very  supremacy 
of  affairs  in  America,  and  he  is  only  a  bishop,  and  poor  as  Job. 
A  bishop  in  France  will  consider  his  fortune  as  made  if  he  can 
get  a  thousand  dollars  or  two  thousand  dollars  a  year ;  and  out 
of  that  he  has  to  support  all  the  poor  of  the  parish  ;  he  has 
to  contribute  to  all  the  hospitals,  and  then  to  look  after  the 
schools,  and  he  has  to  keep  himself  with  a  certain  amount  of 
grandeur — because  one  of  the  titles  of  a  bishop  in   France  is 

vatre  grandeur.     It  is  very  hard,  my  friends,,  when  you  have 

18 


274  Catholicity  not  the  Danger,  but  the  Safety 

given  away  to  the  schools,  and  hospitals,  and  churches,  to  be 
grand  on  a  fourth  part  of  a  thousand  dollars  a  year.  When  th». 
Pope's  enemies  went  to  Rome  they  thought  they  would  find  him 
wealthy  ;  but  they  found  a  man  who  has  been  twenty-five  year. 
Pope  of  Rome,  and  his  personal  expense  for  his  food  and  clothes, 
and  everything  else,  never  exceeded  one  hundred  and  twenty 
pounds  sterling  a  year.  Six  hundred  dollars  kept  him.  We 
cannot  be  rich,  and  why?  Because  the  Catholic  priest  is  bound 
to  preach  the  Gospel  that  says :  "  Blessed  are  the  poor  in 
spirit ; "  and  the  Catholic  bishop  is  bound  not  to  tell  a  lie, 
when  he  has  spoken  in  the  name  of  God,  nor  to  contradict  it  by 
his  own  actions. 

Where  is  the  danger  of  America  from  Catholicity?  Is  Cath- 
olicity opposed  to  a  republican  form  of  government  ?  I  answer 
from  the  history  of  the  mediaeval  republics  of  Italy ;  they 
were  the  freest  republics  which  ever  existed — the  republics 
of  Genoa,  and  Tuscany,  and  Venice — and  they  were  formed 
under  the  immediate  patronage  and  protection  of  the  Church 
of  Rome.  For  hundreds  and  hundreds  of  years  the  little  Re- 
public of  San  Marino,  which  is  only  one  hill,  with  a  few  hun- 
dred families  with  their  little  huts,  has  been  a  republic — yes, 
for  more  than  a  thousand  years.  There  it  was  by  the  side  of 
the  Pope,  and,  instead  of  crushing  out  the  little  State,  he  pro- 
claimed its  liberty.  And,  accordingly,  the  few  families  of  San 
Marino  have  been  making  laws  for  themselves  for  more  than  a 
thousand  years.  It  is  true  that  the  Catholic  Church  herself  is 
a  monarchy.  It  could  not  be  anything  else.  The  meaning  of 
the  word  is  derived  from  the  Greek  monos,  one,  and  archos,  a 
ruler — one  ruler,  or  chief.  It  must  be  so  in  religious  or  church 
matters.  We  must  recognize  a  head.  But  one  of  the  most 
glorious  governments  that  the  Catholics  ever  established  and 
protected  was  the  government  that  the  Jesuits  established  in 
South  America ;  and  that  was  a  republic.  Let  no  man  say 
that  a  republic  is  opposed  to  Catholicity.  On  the  contrary, 
the  greatest  enemy  that  the  Catholic  Church  has  ever  had  in 
her  way  was  an  old,  pedantic,  narrow-minded  despot,  who  en- 
deavored to  oppress  the  people  with  one  hand,  and  to  strike 
down  the  Church  with  the  other,  that  he  might  make  a  god  of 
himself.  It  is  to  the  people  that  the  Catholic  Church  appeals. 
There  is  no  government  in  the  world  this  iroment  that  is  not 


of  the  Great  American  Republic.  275 

opposed  to  her,  is  not  trying  to  strike  her  to  the  earth.  It  is 
to  the  people  that  she  appeals.  And  as  long  as  the  people 
have  the  making  of  their  own  laws,  as  long  as  they  have  the 
shaping  of  their  own  institutions,  as  in  this  country  to-day,  so 
long  Catholicity  will  flourish  here  more  than  under  any  other 
government  upon  earth, 

I  think,  my  friends,  I  have  sufficiently  proved  my  theme — 
that  Catholicity  is  much  more  likely  to  be  the  safety  than  the 
danger  of  the  great  American  Republic.  What  remains?  It 
remains  for  such  amongst  the  audience  as  have  honored  me 
this  evening,  who  are  not  Catholics,  to  consider,  intellectually 
and  deeply,  these  words  of  mine  ;  what  truth  is  in  them.  And 
it  remains  for  you,  my  Catholic  friends,  to  build  up  the  glorious 
argument  of  the  Church's  liberty,  the  Church's  purity,  the 
Church's  unity  and  sanctity,  and  to  corroborate  it  by  the  manli- 
ness, and  honesty,  and  sobriety,  and  sanctity  of  your  own  lives. 
Vain,  vain,  as  is  the  hum  of  a  summer  bee,  will  be  the  word  of 
the  Catholic  apologist  or  lecturer,  if  America  be  able  to  turn 
around  and  say  :  "  Here  are  the  people  who  are  supposed  to 
illustrate  it ;  and  their  lives  are  not  the  lives  of  worthy  citizens." 
But  when  we  are  able,  as  we  advance  those  glorious  truths,  to 
show  that  our  lives  are  not  opposed  to  our  logic  and  convic- 
tions, we  can  say  to  the  world  :  "  Look  at  the  great,  generous 
heart  of  America  ;  look  at  these  Catholics.  Where  have  you 
better  citizens?  Have  you  more  honest  or  patriotic  men  in  the 
State  ?  Where  are  the  m.en  more  able  to  make  the  laws  for 
America,  and  more  willing  to  go  out  into  the  gap,  and  shed 
their  blood  and  give  their  lives  in  defense  of  America's  freedom, 
than  the  Catholics  ?  "  Then,  indeed,  my  friends,  the  argument 
will  be  irresistible.  America  will  come — young,  glorious, 
mighty  in  intellect,  mighty  in  material  power,  mighty  in  energy, 
in  human  force — she  will  come  to  demand  of  God,  at  the  hands 
of  the  Catholic  Church,  the  crowning  grace  of  unity  of  faith 
and  sacramental  sanctity,  which  the  Catholic  Church  alone  can 
throw  around  her  ;  and,  with  this  crown  on  her  laureled  brows, 
the  ancient  despotisms  of  the  world  will  bend  the  knee  in  craven 
fear,  and  do  homage  to  magnificent  Columbia. 


THE    CATHOLIC   CHURCH   IN 

AMERICA. 


[Lecture  delivered  in  St.  Patrick's  Church,  New  Orleans,  La.,  on  January  13,  1873.] 

EAR  Friends  :  Any  one  who  wi.shes  to  mark  atten- 
tively the  course  of  events  of  this  world  must  recog- 
nize in  all  that  he  sees  around  him  the  hand  of  God 
and  the  hand  of  the  devil ;  God  influencing  all  things 
for  good,  and  the  devil  coming  in  on  all  sides  and  trying  to  spoil 
God's  work.  Now,  amongst  the  works  of  God,  the  greatest  is 
the  Christian  religion  and  the  Catholic  Church  ;  and  amongst 
the  many  means  the  devil  employs  to  gain  his  end,  namely,  that 
of  spoiling  the  work  of  God — one  great  lever  that  he  makes  use 
of  is,  to  inspire  the  nations  and  the  peoples  with  a  kind  of  dread 
and  fear  of  the  Catholic  Church.  He  says  to  the  nations; 
"Don't  listen  to  her;  don't  hear  her  voice  at  all ;  don't  have 
anything  to  say  to  her.  She  is  bad.  She  will  corrupt  you,  she 
will  bewitch  you."  He  gives  them  no  reason  for  this.  He  has 
no  reason  for  it.  Nothing  must  strike  a  man  more  at  first  sight 
than  the  strange  repugnance  and  unreasoning  fear  with  which 
so  many  sectarians,  Protestants  and  others,  regard  the  Catholic 
Church.  I  remember,  some  years  ago,  a  very  enlightened, 
highly-cultivated  English  lady  came  to  Rome  with  her  daugh- 
ter. The  daughter  became  a  Catholic,  and  I  received  her  into 
the  Church.  Her  mother  came  to  me  the  same  day,  wild  with 
grief,  the  tears  streaming  from  her  eyes — a  heart-broken  woman. 
She  says :  "  What  have  you  done  to  my  child  ?  Oh  !  you 
wicked  man,  what  have  you  done  to  my  child?  You  have 
ruined  my  child  and  broken  my  heart."  I  said  :  "  How  is  that  ?  " 
''*  Well,"  she  said,  "  you  have  made  a  Catholic  of  my  daughter." 
•  Yes ;  that  is  true.     Under  God,  I  have  been  the  means  of 


The  Catholic  Church  in  America.  277 

making  a  Catholic  of  her.  But  do  you  think  that  is  sufficient 
reason  for  breaking  your  heart?  "  "Yes,  it  is,"  said  she.  I  said 
to  her:  "You  are  a  well-educated  lady;  I  simply  ask  you  one 
question  :  What  point  is  there  in  the  teachings  or  in  the  practice 
of  the  Catholic  Church  that  you  object  to?  "  She  paused  for  a 
moment.  "  Well,"  she  said,  "  I  don't  know  ;  but  I  know  that 
you  have  bewitched  my  child  and  broken  my  heart."  "  Can 
you  find  fault,"  I  said,  "with  any  one  doctrine  of  the  Catholic 
Church  that  your  child  has  embraced  ?  "  She  said  she  could  not. 
And  yet  the  woman  acknowledged  to  me,  "  If  my  child 
had  renounced  God  and  declared  herself  an  atheist,  I  would 
not  be  so  grieved  as  I  am  for  her  to  become  a  Catholic ; " 
and  that  without  any  reason  under  heaven  ;  without  knowing 
the  why  or  the  wherefore — without  being  able  to  find  the  slight- 
est cause.  Well,  as  it  happened,  within  twelve  months  I  had 
the  happiness  to  receive  this  same  mother  into  the  Church,  and 
make  a  good  Catholic  of  her. 

My  friends,  amongst  the  nations  through  which  I  have  travel- 
ed, nowhere  have  I  found  this  distrust  and  fear  of  the  Catholic 
Church  more  unreasoning  and  more  powerful  than  in  America. 
I  generally  enter  freely  into  conversation  with  people — strangers 
with  whom  I  am  thrown  in  contact.  But  sometimes  I  have  met 
people,  to  whom  if  I  say  "  Good-morning,"  they  will  move  off  as  if 
they  heard  the  rattle  of  a  rattlesnake.  Sometimes  I  have  been 
obliged  to  say,  "You  needn't  be  afraid  of  me;  I  am  a  priest, 
but  I  will  not  eat  you."  "Well,  this  is  the  first  time  in  my  life 
that  I  ever  spoke  to  a  Catholic  priest.  Do  you  know,  I  think  I 
would  rather  not  have  anything  more  to  say  to  you."  But  I 
reason  with  him;  I  ask  him,  "What  fault  have  you  to  find? 
Why  are  you  afraid  of  me?"  "Well,  nothing  particular;  but 
I  don't  know.  It  is  a  subject  I  avoid  ;  I  will  not  have  anything  to 
say."  Then,  by  a  little  pressing,  I  get  the  man  into  an  argu- 
ment, and  I  find  that  he  hasn't  a  single  clear  idea  about  the 
Catholic  Church ;  that  he  doesn't  know  a  thing  about  it;  that 
he  is  frightened  at  a  bugbear — an  imagination — a  creation  of 
his  own  fancy,  like  the  monsters  which  the  Chinese  make,  to 
carry  before  them  in  battle,  at  the  sight  of  which  their  enemies 
turn  and  run  away. 

So,  Protestantism,  for  three  hundred  years,  has  been  making 
a  most  horrible  bugbear  of  the  Catholic  Church,  giving  it  horns, 


278  The  Catholic  Church  in  America. 

hoofs,  and  tail,  a  flaming  tongue  of  fire,  and  great  goggle  eyes, 
and  says  to  the  men  of  the  nineteenth  century,  who  boast  of 
their  intelligence,  "  Don't  look  at  it  !  Don't  speak  to  it !  Run 
away!  It  will  bewitch  you.  Hate  it !  Detest  it !  Don't  trust 
the  Catholic  Church  !  If  you  do,  she  will  put  an  end  to  your 
liberties,  your  happiness,  your  all !  "  And  the  big  boobies  of 
the  nineteenth  century  get  frightened  and  run  away. 

Now,  the  subject  on  which  I  propose  to  address  you  this  evening 
is  the  glorious  theme  that  the  Catholic  Church  is  not  the  dan- 
ger, but,  under  God,  the  future  salvation  of  this  grand  and  mag- 
nificent Republic   of  America.     I    confess    to   you,  my  friends, 
that,  as  firmly  as   I   believe  in   the   Catholic  religion,  convinced 
as    I  am   that   that  is  the    only  true   religion  ;  convinced   as  I 
am  that  that  Church,  under  God,  is  the  only  means  of  salvation, 
out  of  which    there  is  no  salvation,  save  and  except   under  the 
mean  pretext    of  invincible    ignorance — which   means    that  if 
men  knew  a  little  more  they  would  be  damned ;  they  are  just 
ignorant  enough  to  be  saved — a  little  knowledge  would  be  the 
ruin  of  them — believing  all  this,  I  would  not  have  the  heart  nor 
the   courage  to   speak  to   the   people   of  America,  and  preach 
Catholicity  to  them,  if  in  the   secret   recesses  of  my  heart  and 
mind  I  had  the  faintest  idea  that  the  Catholic  religion  would  be 
dangerous  to  the  State.     In  this  age  of  ours,  men  are  not  even 
willing  to  accept  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven  at  the  cost  of  any 
great  sacrifice.     If  God  would  offer  them  heaven  on  condition 
of  giving   up  certain   advantages,  they  would   be   unwilling  to 
accept  it  at  such  a  price.     But  no   single  earthly  advantage  is 
sacrificed,  but  everything  is  gained,  when  a  nation  rises  up,  as 
Ireland  rose  up  under  the  hand  of  St.  Patrick,  and  like  one  man 
opens  its  eyes  and  heart  to  Catholicity. 

First,  let  us  reason  a  little  on  this  great  theme.  I  suppose  all 
men,  Protestant  and  Catholic  alike,  acknowledge  that  when 
Christ,  our  Lord,  founded  our  religion  on  this  earth.  He  founded 
that  religion  for  the  express  purpose  of  saving  the  world — that 
that  religion  was  to  be  the  salvation  of  mankind.  Now,  from 
what  did  Christ  purpose  to  save  the  world.  What  was  the  evil 
that  he  came  to  remedy?  Answer — the  first  evil  our  Lord 
came  to  remedy  was  ignorance — ignorance  the  most  deplorable, 
the  most  profound.  Could  anything  be  more  terrible  than  the 
state  of  ignorance  in  which  Christ  found  the  world  ?     Men  of 


The  Catholic  Chirch  in  America.  279 

intelligence,  splendid  minds,  varied  and  profound  genius,  bowed 
down  and  worshiped  their  own  vices  and  their  own  wickedness, 
and  called  those  vices  God.  The  whole  world  worshiped  im- 
purity under  the  name  of  Venus  ;  they  worshiped  dishonesty 
under  the  name  of  Mercury,  who  was  the  god  of  thieves;  re- 
venge under  the  name  of  Mars  ;  every  vice  and  passion,  even  to 
the  passion  of  avarice,  that  eats  the  heart  out  of  the  miser, 
which  they  adored  under  the  name  of  Plutus,  who  was  the  pro- 
tector of  riches  and  of  those  that  sought  them.  It  was  bad 
enough  to  be  ignorant  of  the  truth  ;  but  they  went  further ; 
they  not  only  lost  sight  of  heaven,  but,  not  content  with  the 
darkness  of  earth,  they  went  groveling  down  into  hell,  to  find 
their  God  there. 

The  second  evil  that  Christ  found  in  the  world,  wide-spread, 
was  the  evil  of  impurity,  sapping  and  destroying  the  vital  ener- 
gies, physical  and  mental,  and  the  power  and  strength  of  men. 
He  found  as  soon  as  manhood  began  to  dawn  upon  them,  as 
soon  as  they  began  to  feel  the  throbs  of  virile  blood  in  their 
veins — He  found  them  yielding  to  every  prompting  of  the  baser 
instincts,  going  out  ravening  to  gratify  the  strong,  unreasoning, 
earthly  passions  that  poisoned  the  spring  of  life,  and  destroyed 
all  hope  of  future  manhood.  He  found  impurity  all  over  the 
world,  so  that  the  virtue  of  chastity  was  not  only  not  to  be 
found  amongst  men,  but  it  was  not  even  known  amongst  them — 
it  had  no  name.  His  Virgin  Mother,  the  purest  of  God's  crea- 
tures, had  her  virginity  laid  as  a  reproach  upon  her.  From  this 
impurity  it  would  follow  that  there  was  no  such  thing  as  the 
family  circle,  with  its  blessed  and  holy  influences.  The  Roman 
wife  was  a  slave,  dependent  upon  the  mere  caprice  of  her  hus- 
band, who,  when  time  had  worn  the  bloom  off  her  cheek,  ex- 
changed her  for  another,  and  a  fairer,  and  a  younger  woman. 

In  the  third  place,  Christ  found  the  evil  of  dishonesty.  No 
man's  word  was  to  be  depended  upon ;  commercial  honesty 
seemed  to  have  perished.  The  old  straightforward  manner  of 
the  first  republican  Romans  had  departed  ;  and  in  the  tottering, 
effete  empire,  dishonesty — commercial,  social,  international — 
was  the  order  of  the  day. 

These  were  the  diseases  under  which  the  world  suffered. 
Men  sinned  because  they  knew  no  better ;  they  were  ignorant. 
They  were  steeped  in   impurity — their  manhood  was  gone  out 


28o  The  Catholic  Church  in  America. 

of  them,  so  that  a  few  thousand  barbarians  easily  broke  up  and 
smashed  to  pieces  the  mighty  Roman  Empire,  and  overcame 
those  once  invincible  legions,  that  had  given  law  to  the  whole 
world.  And  dishonesty  had  crept  into  every  rank  of  life  ;  soci- 
ety was  rapidly  breaking  up  into  chaotic  elements. 

What  did  Christ  say  and  do?  He  told  men  that  he  had 
come  down  from  heaven  expressly  to  teach  them,  in  order  that 
all  men  might  know  the  truth.  He  emphatically  declared  that 
from  His  lips,  and  from  the  lips  of  those  He  appointed  to  teach 
them,  the  world  should  gain — not  a  spirit  of  inquiry,  my 
friends,  not  a  spirit  of  Protestantism  looking  for  the  truth.  No  ! 
But  He  said  :  "  You  shall  know  the  truth ;  you  shall  have 
knowledge  of  it,  fixed,  clear,  and  definite,  and  in  that  knowledge 
you  shall  find  your  freedom  !  You  shall  know  the  truth,  and 
the  truth  shall  make  you  free !  "  And  then  the  Son  of  God 
laid  His  hand  upon  a  little  child  and  said  :  "  Blessed  are  the 
clean  of  heart,  for  they  shall  see  God  !  "  And  to  all  men  He 
said  :  "  Unless  you  become  even  as  this  little  child,  you  shall 
not  enter  the  kingdom."  As  if  He  would  say  :  "  Behold  this 
child  !  no  impure  thought  has  ever  soiled  its  innocence ;  no  un- 
lawful crime  or  sinful  passion  has  ever  entered  its  breast.  Unless 
you  become  as  this  little  child,  ye  shall  not  enter  the  kingdom 
of  heaven  !  "  And  then  He  declared  the  sacred  principle  of 
conscience — that  every  man  should  act  to  his  fellow-men  as  he 
would  wish  them  to  act  to  him  ;  that  every  man  who  perpe- 
trated an  outrage  or  injury  should  not  enter  heaven  until  he 
repaid  the  last  farthing  !  He  established  the  principle  of  social, 
commercial,  and  international  honor — truth,  chastity,  and  hon- 
esty !  Behold  the  three  elements  of  the  religion  of  Christ — the 
three  grand  sanitary  powers  that  He  put  into  His  Church  when 
He  declared  it  to  be  the  salt  of  the  earth.  It  is  by  truth, 
chastity,  and  honor  that  the  Church  has  saved,  is  saving,  and  is 
destined  unto  the  end  to  save  the  world.  Without  truth, 
chastity,  and  honor,  there  is  no  salvation  for  the  people. 

Reflect,  first,  upon  truth.  Why  is  truth  the  salvation  of  the 
people  ?  For  many  reasons.  I  will  give  you  only  one.  I  don't 
know  that  it  is  the  highest  reason,  but  it  is  the  one  that  bears 
the  most  directly  upon  myself.  The  salvation  of  a  people  lies 
in  unity.  To  be  a  unit  is  the  first  necessity  of  a  people.  Christ, 
our  Lord,  Himself  declares  that  a  house  divided  against  itself 


The  Catholic  Church  in  America.  281 

must  fall.  And  the  first  element  of  national  existence  and 
national  progress  is.  that  the  people  should  be  united  ;  and 
the  enemy  of  public  freedom  and  the  liberty  of  the  people 
in  all  ages,  has  always  begun  his  infernal  work  by  trying  to 
create  divisions  and  dissensions  amongst  them.  I  might  point, 
as  an  illustration,  to  Ireland,  the  Niobe  of  nations,  the  martyred 
mother  who  bore  me.  For  seven  hundred  years  we  have 
groaned  beneath  the  tyrant's  hands,  pitiless  and  unrelenting, 
unrelaxing  in  his  grasp.  Why  ?  Because  he  governed  a  divided 
people.  It  was  but  the  other  day  that  an  eloquent  English- 
man, in  New  York,  said,  in  our  very  teeth,  that  Ireland  was  a 
slave  because  she  was  divided  ;  and  on  the  day  that  she  was 
united  no  power  under  heaven  could  bind  her  into  slavery  for  a 
single  hour. 

Union  being  the  first  element  of  national  existence  and  prog- 
ress, I  ask.  What  is  the  first  element  of  this  union  ?  What  is 
the  strongest  bond  that  can  bind  a  people  together  and  keep 
them  together?  I  answer  at  once,  the  principle  of  religious 
unity ;  it  is  the  most  sacred  of  all  bonds,  because  it  is  the  most 
abiding,  the  most  unchanging  ;  it  is  a  bond  fixed  by  Almighty 
God  Himself.  Nations  are  sometimes  made  one  by  the  acci- 
dental circumstances  of  conquest.  But  that  union  that  is  ef- 
fected by  the  sword  must  be  preserved  by  the  sword,  or  it  ceases 
to  exist.  Take  the  union  of  Ireland  and  England.  It  was  ef- 
fected by  the  sword — a  sword  that  was  never  allowed  to  rust  as 
long  as  there  was  Irish  blood  at  hand  to  keep  it  clean  and 
bright  by  the  tears  and  blood  of  the  people.  But  that  sword 
has  begun  to  rust  to-day.  It  is  no  longer  the  powerful  falchion 
it  once  was  in  the  hand  of  a  fearless  nation.  It  rusts  in  its 
scabbard ;  the  nation  that  owns  it  is  afraid  to  draw  it ;  and  the 
people  of  Ireland  are  waiting,  waiting,  thinking  that  the  rust 
will  come  over  the  brightness  of  the  blade  :  and  the  moment  it 
does,  that  moment,  the  union  which  was  effected  by  the  sword 
will  be  broken  by  the  sword.  Why?  Because  such  a  bond  is 
not  of  heaven,  but  of  earth. 

Again,  the  accidental  circumstance  of  mutual  consent  may 
bind  nations  together.  For  instance,  the  various  States  of  this 
American  Union — they  have  agreed  and  united  upon  the  basis 
of  mutual  independence  and  State  rights.  So  they  have  been 
united,  and  so  they  are  united ;  and  may  God  in   heaven  bless 


282  The  Catholic  Church  in  America. 

that  Union,  and  inspire  every  American  citizen,  great  and  small, 
no  matter  who  he  be,  with  respect  for  the  sacred  principles 
which  the  nation  adopted  ;  for  it  is  only  by  respecting  those, 
on  the  solid  foundation  of  the  law,  that  a  people  can  be  kept 
together. 

Nations,  again,  may  be  bound  together  by  mutual  commer- 
cial interests.  England  and  France  made  a  commercial  treaty 
a  few  years  ago.  But  France  found  the  treaty  worked  disad- 
vantageously  to  her,  and  so  dissolved  it ;  and  the  entente 
cordiale  of  which  we  heard  so  much  was  broken. 

There  is  only  one  bond  that  can  bind  a  people  and  keep 
them  together  in  a  union  that  can  never  be  destroyed,  and  that 
is,  the  union  of  heart,  soul,  mind,  and  sympathy  that  springs 
from  one  undivided  and  common  faith.  Every  other  bond  may 
be  shattered,  and  yet  a  people  remain  essentially  one.  Every 
other  preserving  element  of  a  race  may  be  destroyed,  and  yet  a 
people  will  retain  their  national  individuality,  alive  and  vig- 
orous, in  spite  of  everything  on  earth,  because  their  union 
comes  from  God.  Behold  a  case  in  point.  For  seven  hundred 
years  the  people  of  my  native  land  have  been  subjected  to  a 
series  of  the  most  terrible  persecutions  and  trials  that  ever  any 
nation  in  the  world  suffered.  Her  enemies  wished  to  break  in 
pieces  the  individuality  of  Ireland,  so  that  the  disjecta  membray 
the  broken  fragments,  might  be  cast  into  every  nation  on  the 
earth,  and  amalgamate  with  them  ;  and  that  the  Irish,  as  a 
people,  might  be  wiped  out  from  the  face  of  the  earth.  For 
seven  hundred  years,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  the  Irish  were 
divided  on  every  other  point,  in  councils,  in  politics,  in  sympa- 
thies— even  in  race  and  blood — Ireland  preserved  her  nation- 
ality ;  and  to-day  represents  a  compact,  strong,  individualized 
nationality,  full  of  life,  youth,  vigor,  intellect,  and  energy. 
Why?  Because  God  blessed  us,  in  the  midst  of  our  misfor- 
tunes, with  the  blessing  from  heaven  of  religious  unity.  Now, 
I  ask  you,  as  reasoning  men,  as  you  are,  did  Christ  say  any- 
thing about  the  idea  of  unity?  The  night  before  the  Son  of 
God  suffered  on  the  cross.  He  had  His  apostles  around  Him  ; 
at  the  Last  Supper  He  lifted  up  His  eyes  and  hands  to  heaven, 
and  made  His  prayer  for  His  apostles,  and  His  Church,  and  for 
every  man.  What  do  you  think  He  prayed  for?  He  said: 
"  O   Father !  I   pray  for  these  that  they  may  be  one.     Keep 


The  Catholic  Church  in  America.  283 

them  in  unity,  as  you,  Father,  and  I  are  one."  He  repeated 
this  over  and  over  again,  and  every  apostle  of  them  took  up  the 
same  message.  Thus  says  St.  Paul :  "  Brethren,  let  there  be 
no  division  among  you,  no  schism,  no  heresy.  I  pray  you  in 
the  Christ  and  the  Holy  Spirit,  that  ye  be  of  one  mind." 
These  are  the  words  of  St.  Paul.  Therefore,  that  unity  spring- 
ing out  of  religion,  a  common  faith,  enters  distinctly  into  the 
ideas  as  it  entered  into  the  prayer  of  Christ. 

The  next  question  is,  Where  does  that  religious  unity  exist? 
Let  us,  for  a  single  instant,  suppose  that  the  Catholic  Church 
no  longer  exists  in  America.  Have  you,  then,  left,  a  single 
principle  of  religious  unity?  Not  one  ;  not  one.  The  Unita- 
rian denies  the  inspiration  of  the  Bible.  You  say  there  is  one 
common  idea  in  the  Protestant  sect — that  is,  the  divinity  of 
Christ.  Not  at  all.  I  can  take  you  to  Protestant  churches  in 
New  York  and  Brooklyn,  and  before  you  are  there  five  minutes 
you  will  hear  the  preacher  deny  the  divinity  of  Christ.  Not  a 
principle  of  religious  unity  outside  the  Catholic  Church — but  in 
its  place  you  have  Shakers,  and  Quakers,  and  Baptists,  and 
Anabaptists,  and  Methodists,  and  Mormons.  In  the  midst 
of  them  all ;  in  the  midst  of  the  jarring  discord,  the  sounds  of 
their  bickering  and  quarreling ;  in  the  midst  of  their  mutual 
hurling  of  damnation  at  each  other,  one  having  as  much  au- 
thority to  do  it  as  the  other,  rises  the  awful  figure  of  the  Cath- 
olic Church,  gigantic  in  her  proportions,  towering  over  the  whole 
world,  many-tongued  in  her  voice,  for  her  word  is  heard  in 
every  tongue  in  which  man  expresses  his  sorrows  and  his  joys ; 
crowned  with  two  thousand  years  of  undisputed  glory ;  stand- 
ing upon  a  pedestal  sunk  deep  upon  the  rock  of  ages,  and  built 
up  with  the  blood  of  her  martyrs  ;  there  she  stands,  speaking 
the  self-same  words  that  she  spoke  two  thousand  years  ago, 
preaching  the  same  truth,  proclaiming  the  same  authority  :  "  I 
come  from  God.  My  message  is  from  God.  I  stood  by  the 
Saviour  at  His  cross.  I  stood  by  His  empty  tomb  on  Easter 
morning.  I  stood  with  the  fiery  flames  over  my  head  on  the 
day  of  Pentecost.  I  speak  th-e  words  I  have  always  spoken, 
and  defy  the  whole  world  to  contradict  me  in  one  word  of  my 
speech."  She  alone  can  create  unity,  because  she  alone  will 
permit  no  man  to  contradict  her.  As  she  has  her  message  from 
God,  and  as  that  message  must  be  as  true  as  God,  who  sent  it, 


284  The  Catholic  Church  in  America. 

the  man  who  contradicts  it  must  be  a  liar,  he  must  be  an  enemy 
of  the  truth,  and  a  contradictor  of  the  truth  ;  and  the  moment 
he  raises  his  voice  against  the  Church,  though  he  were  the 
first  of  her  bishops,  or  the  most  powerful  king  in  the  world, 
the  Church  shuts  his  mouth  with  her  hands,  and  says  :  "  Kneel 
down  and  repent — or  else,  let  the  curse  of  excommunication  be 
upon  you.     Begone,  to  wither  and  die,  and  fall  into  hell !  " 

What  is  the  great  difficulty  with  the  nations  to-day  ?  For 
fifteen  hundred  years  the  nations  were  united  in  their  faith. 
No  nation  was  Christian  that  was  not  also  Catholic.  But  Luther 
came,  and  the  nations  were  divided.  One  of  the  most  cele- 
brated and  greatest  statesmen  that  ever  lived,  was  William 
Pitt,  Earl  of  Chatham,  who  governed,  as  Prime  Minister,  Eng- 
land and  Ireland,  in  1800,  the  year  that  Lord  Castlereagh,  that 
amiable  man,  who  afterward  cut  his  throat,  made  the  union 
between  England  and  Ireland.  Pitt  was  decidedly  one  of  the 
greatest  minds  in  England,  yet  he  was  obliged  to  resign 
the  Premiership,  he  declaring  he  could  no  longer  govern 
England  and  Ireland,  because  the  people  were  divided  in  their 
religion.  He  solemnly  promised  the  Catholics  he  would  grant 
them  emancipation  in  1800 — twenty-nine  years  before  it  was 
forced — he  pledged  his  almost  royal  word  that  it  should  be 
done.  But  as  soon  as  it  was  known  in  England,  and  as  soon  as 
Protestant  Ireland  knew  it,  they  raised  such  a  clamor,  that  the 
very  greatest  man  in  the  three  kingdoms  resigned  his  position, 
and  declared  it  was  impossible  to  govern  a  people  divided  in 
religion.  Two  hundred  years  ago,  in  1640,  Charles  I.  promised 
to  relax  the  penal  laws  against  the  Catholics.  He  saw  their 
injustice.  The  moment  that  it  was  known  in  England,  such 
was  the  turmoil  and  threats,  that  the  king  was  obliged  to  break 
his  royal  word,  and  put  his  broken  promise  in  his  pocket,  and 
let  the  misery  go  on. 

The  present  Prime  Minister  of  England  is  a  very  fair-minded 
man,  if  they  would  only  let  him.  He  sees  the  injustice  with 
which  Catholics  are  treated.  He  sees  that  whilst  every  petty 
Protestant  school  in  Ireland  has  its  endowment  and  its  charter, 
when  the  whole  Irish  nation  founded  a  university  in  Ireland, 
they  refused  to  give  them  a  charter.  They  didn't  ask  for  a 
halfpenny,  only  a  charter.  Gladstone  would  be  glad  to  do  it ; 
but  he  is  afraid. 


The  Catholic  Church  in  America.  285 

One  of  the  grandest  ideas  of  this  age  of  ours  was  the  unifica- 
tion of  Germany.  Bismarck,  a  man  of  wonderful  genius,  conceived 
that  idea  and  carried  it  out  practically — a  magnificent  achieve- 
ment ;  but  he  is  so  shortsighted  as  to  be  now  at  work  ex- 
asperating sixteen  millions  of  the  German  people  who  are  Catho- 
lics, by  persecuting  their  religion,  shutting  up  their  schools,  driv- 
ing out  their  nuns  and  Jesuits,  and  closing  their  hospitals.  He 
is  doing  a  foolish  thing ;  but  he  can't  help  it,  because  the 
majority  of  the  nation  decided  he  must  do  it.  I  must  say,  as  a 
student  of  history,  that  while  they  lay  to  our  doors  the  charge 
of  persecution,  nowhere  do  we  read  in  the  annals  of  the  world 
of  persecution  carried  on  with  so  much  gusto  and  enjoyment 
as  the  persecutions  of  Protestants  when  they  have  the  upper 
hand.  You  see  it  to-day  in  Germany.  The  Protestants  there 
have  but  a  small  majority,  but  they  exercise  their  power  piti- 
lessly. How  easy  it  would  be  for  Bismarck  to  avoid  all  this, 
if  Germany  were  again  all  Catholic,  as  she  was  under  Charles  V. ! 
How  easy  it  would  be  for  Gladstone  to  govern  England  and 
Ireland,  if  they  were  a  unit  in  religious  faith  ;  for  when  this 
great  screw  in  the  political  union  is  loose,  the  whole  machinery 
is  rickety,  and  is  liable  to  come  to  pieces  at  once.  The  Catholic 
Church  alone  can  rivet  it.  And  yet  men  say  that  the  Catho- 
lic Church  is  dangerous  to  America.  The  Catholic  Church  will 
be  dangerous  to  America  when  disunion,  mutual  distrust,  and 
mutual  disaffection  become  one  of  the  elements  of  the  greatness 
of  a  nation,  and  not  until  then. 

The  next  element  of  greatness,  power,  and  strength  in  a  na- 
tion is  the  virtue  of  purity.  Every  evil,  every  sin,  in  the  long 
run,  no  matter  how  pleasant  it  may  be  at  the  moment,  and 
every  act  committed  by  a  nation,  as  well  as  an  individual,  in 
the  long  run,  although  a  hundred  years  may  elapse,  the  punish- 
ment may  be  traced  back  to  the  crime  that  caused  it.  The  vice 
of  impurity  has  this  peculiarity,  that  it  is  destructive  not  only 
of  the  individual,  but  of  the  race  ;  and  it  is  noticeable,  that 
though  in  punishing  other  crimes,  God  visited  individuals,  in 
punishing  this.  He  has  afflicted  whole  nations. 

And,  finally,  honesty  is  an  element  in  the  greatness  of  a  peo- 
ple. It  is  getting  scarcer  every  day.  Some  time  ago  I  was  in 
a  railway  carriage,  and  a  gentleman  quoted  the  poet :  "  An 
honest  man  's  the  noblest  work  of  God,"  when    another  man 


286  TJie  Catholic  Church  in  America. 

cried  from  the  other  end  of  the  carriage:  "I  am  sorry  to 
say  that  God  Almighty  doesn't  seem  to  spend  much  of  his 
time  producing  works  of  that  kind  nowadays."  I  don't  speak 
from  experience  ;  I  know  nothing  about  society ;  I  don't  belong 
to  it ;  I  belong  to  the  cloister.  I  find  those  amongst  whom  I  live 
are  honest.  It  is  easy  to  be  honest  amongst  us,  for  we  haven't  any- 
thing, so  nobody  can  take  anything  from  us.  But  I  read  the 
papers,  and  hear  great  complaints  of  commercial  dishonesty. 

If,  then,  O  people  of  America  ! — if  union,  founded  upon  the 
grand  principle  of  religious  unity,  if  the  preservation  of  strength, 
manhood,  genius,  and  intellect — if  honesty,  public  and  private — 
if  these  three  things  are  necessary  for  you  in  America,  you  must 
come  to  the  Catholic  Church  to  get  them,  because  you  cannot  get 
them  elsewhere.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  these  things  are  danger- 
ous, then  the  Catholic  Church  is  a  danger  to  America.  If  Amer- 
ica looks  upon  these  things  as  dangerous — any  nation  that  looks 
upon  religious  knowledge  and  unity,  upon  purity  and  chastity, 
upon  public  and  private  honesty — any  nation  that  looks  upon 
these  things  as  dangerous,  is  already  self-condemned.  But  Amer- 
ica does  not  look  upon  these  things  as  dangerous.  No.  The  in- 
telligence that  has  been  thus  born  and  cradled  in  freedom  never 
yet  turned  away  from  the  glorious  light  of  the  Catholic  Church, 
but  sooner  or  later  turned  to  it.  The  nation  that  has  opened 
her  imperial  bosom,  irrespective  of  previous  antecedents,  to  all 
who  have  been  driven  from  other  nations  by  religious  or  politi- 
cal tyranny,  that  nation,  sooner  or  later,  will  become  Catholic; 
and  in  the  day  when  mighty  America  becomes  Catholic,  in  the 
day  when  the  genius  of  Catholicity — the  foster-mother  of  human 
liberty,  the  guardian  of  human  purity,  the  proud  shield  of  the 
dignity  of  womanhood,  the  splendid  and  unchanging  voice  pro- 
claiming herself  the  strong  preserver  of  public  and  private  hon- 
esty— in  the  day  when  the  genius  of  this  Catholicity  enters  into 
the  mind  and  heart  of  America ;  when  this  mighty  people  will 
be  united  as  one  man  by  the  sacred  union  of  religious  unity, 
based  upon  freedom,  based  upon  integrity,  and  upon  justice — 
tell  me,  is  there  any  man  living — tell  me,  is  there  any  philoso- 
pher upon  earth,  poet  or  orator,  whose  vivid  imagination  can 
approach  to  the  magnificent  realities,  the  intellectual,  moral, 
and  physical  grandeur  that  America  will  present  to  the  world 
in  that  glorious  day  that  is  before  her  ? 


MARY,  THE  MORNING  STAR. 


[Sermon  preached  in  the  Church  of  St.  Vincent  Ferrer,  New  York,  en  Thursday 
evening,  September  26,  1S72,  the  proceeds  to  be  given  to  the  Society  of  St.  Vincent 
de  Paul,  for  the  use  of  the  poor  of  the  parish.] 

Y  Friends,  you  have  assembled  here,  this  evening,  on 
the  noblest  occasion  that  could  bring  you  together — 
namely,  in  the  cause  of  the  stricken  poor  of  God. 
Recognizing  the  beauty  of  your  charity,  and  the  no- 
bility of  the  nature  that  has  brought  you  together,  I  have 
selected  for  your  entertainment  the  most  magnificent  theme  that 
could  occupy  the  mind,  or  dwell  upon  the  lips  of  mortal  man — 
The  Blessed  Virgin  Considered  as  the  Morning  Star, 

First  of  all,  observe,  that  there  is  a  wonderful  analogy  between 
the  things  of  nature  and  the  things  of  grace ;  because  the 
Almighty  God  is  the  God  of  nature  as  well  as  of  grace.  One 
of  the  peculiar  features  of  the  Catholic  Church  and  the  Catholic 
religion — one  of  the  strongest  arguments  to  fortify  the  Church  and 
religion — is  the  manner  in  which  the  Catholic  worship  meets 
harmoniously  and  naturally  all  the  wants,  all  the  natural  crav- 
ings and  tendencies  of  the  heart  of  man.  God  has  made  us 
with  certain  aspirations,  certain  wants  that  are  natural  to  us ; 
and  He  has  provided  for  these  in  the  Catholic  Church,  and  in 
that  Church  alone.  Thus,  for  instance,  nothing  is  more  natural 
to  man  than  to  unburden  himself  of  some  secret  which  has 
pressed  him  to  the  very  earth,  which  has  burdened  his  heart, 
and  which  he  cannot  bear  alone.  The  Catholic  Church  only 
provides  him  with  a  friend  to  whom  he  may  confide  that  secret 
with  perfect  confidence  and  trust,  and  from  whom  he  can  receive 
not  only  the  highest  consolation,  but  also  complete  relief  for 
all  his  mental  agony — the  confessor  to  whom  he  kneels  in  the 
tribunal  of  Penance. 


288  Mary,  the  Morning  Star. 

Now,  amongst  the  objects  which  nature  presents  to  us,  there 
is  nothing,  perhaps,  more  beautiful  than  the  morning  star.  The 
shades  of  night  are  thick  upon  the  earth  ;  the  black  clouds  cover 
the  firmament ;  the  storm,  perhaps,  has  passed  in  all  its  fury, 
and  swept  over  the  world  at  the  dark  midnight  hour;  and  men, 
awaked  from  their  slumbers,  have  been  terrified.  The  sailor  on 
the  vasty  deep  has  almost  despaired  of  that  life  which  he  has 
trusted  to  the  treacherous  element  on  which  he  lives.  But, 
when  the  morning  hour  approaches,  a  faint  light  is  seen  over 
the  eastern  horizon  ;  it  brightens,  crowning  the  Orient  hills  with 
a  golden  splendor.  Out  of  that  light — the  promise  of  the  com- 
ing day,  there  rises  a  pale,  silvery,  beautiful  star ;  trembling,  as 
if  afraid  to  encroach  upon  the  domain  of  night,  it  rises  in  its 
solitary  beauty  over  the  eastern  hills  ;  it  tells  of  the  coming  day ; 
it  is  the  herald  and  messenger  of  the  sun,  that  lies,  as  yet,  hid- 
den under  the  eastern  waves,  and  under  the  deep  shadows  of 
the  hills.  The  moment  the  sailor,  in  his  storm-tossed  bark,  sees 
that  star,  he  hails  it  as  the  sure  harbinger  of  the  coming  day. 
The  moment  the  lonely  traveler,  out  on  the  desolate  moor-land, 
perceives  it,  he  knows  that  presently  his  bewildered  way  will  be 
brightened  by  the  rising  sun.  The  very  hills  seem  to  bow  in 
reverence  towards  the  messenger  of  the  coming  day.  And  the 
star,  meantime,  rises  slowly  above  the  horizon,  as  resplendent 
as  the  moon,  because  of  the  thickness  of  darkness  around. 
Gradually,  the  aurora  of  the  dawn  of  day  spreads  its  light  across 
the  heavens;  until,  at  length,  comes  the  splendor  of  the  rising 
sun.  Then  the  morning  star  gradually  loses  itself  in  the  bright- 
er and  greater  light.  It  was  a  beautiful  thing  to  behold — the 
very  ideal  of  modesty,  in  its  solitary,  trembling  ascent  towards 
heaven.  The  light  that  illumined  the  morning  star,  when  it  first 
rose  over  the  horizon,  was  the  light  of  the  sun,  which  had  not 
yet  appeared  to  the  eyes  of  man.  It  was  reflected  light,  not  its 
own.  But  all  this  beauty  came  from  the  fact  that,  at  the  mo- 
ment of  the  dawn,  the  morning  star  alone  was  seen  ;  and  in  that 
star  were  concentrated  all  the  rays  of  the  coming  glory  which 
was  about  to  rise. 

Can  anything  be  imagined  more  beautiful  than  this?  The 
world,  as  it  were,  prepared  for  its  splendor,  by  the  darkness  of 
the  night;  its  beaming,  full  of  hope,  announcing  the  certainty 
of  the  coming  day,  another  bright  day  of  sunshine,  to  gladden 


Mary,  the  Morning  Star.  289 

the  hearts  of  men.  It  hns  the  splendor  of  the  reflected  light 
of  the  sun  which  was  to  follow  in  its  wake,  and  to  rise  upon  that 
very  point  of  the  eastern  horizon  where  the  morning  star  rose 
before.  The  flowers,  drooping  during  the  night,  open  slowly 
their  leaves,  turnmg  their  petals  towards  the  East.  The  lark, 
shaking  the  dew  off  his  wing,  rises  out  of  the  corn-field  with  a 
song  of  gladness,  as  if  ambitious  to  catch  sight  of  the  rising 
sun  before  his  beams  can  shine  on  earth.  The  herds  in  the 
fields  rise  from  their  nightly  rest  to  greet  the  coming  day.  Can 
anything  be  imagined  more  beautiful  in  nature  than  the  beauty 
of  hope — the  beauty  of  its  brightness — the  beauty  of  its  silvery 
light ;  than  the  beauty  of  the  message  it  brings  to  this  darkened 
earth  ?  No  ;  nothing  can  be  imagined  more  beautiful  in  nature 
than  the  morning  star,  as  it  rises  over  the  eastern  hills. 

Now,  God,  the  Son  of  God,  the  Eternal  Son  of  the  Father, 
when  He  was  made  man — the  illuminating  Sun  of  the  earth — the 
true  Light,  the  Light  of  life — He  selected  for  Himself  a  messenger 
that  was  to  go  before  His  face;  that  was  to  proclaim  the  hour 
of  His  approach;  that  was  to  reflect  the  splendor  of  His  light 
in  the  glory  of  her  sanctity,  before  that  light  was  to  burst  forth 
in  the  person  of  her  divine  Son  on  the  earth.  And  in  that 
harmony  with  which  Almighty  God  binds  together,  with  beau- 
tiful links,  the  things  of  heaven  and  the  things  of  earth — the 
things  of  nature  and  the  things  of  grace — He  selected  the  name- 
of  the  woman  that  was  to  herald  His  coming ;  and  that  woman 
was  Mary — in  the  Syriac  language,  Myria ;  which  means  a  star 
rising  in  the  darkness.  And,  therefore,  to  her,  much  more  than 
to  the  saint  of  whom  it  was  written,  may  we  apply  the 
words  of  the  Scripture :  "  Like  the  morning  star  in  the  midst 
of  the  cloud ;  like  the  moon  in  the  midst  of  her  rays  ;  yea, 
like  the  sun  when  he  shines,  so  did  she  shine  in  the  very 
temple  of  God,"  morning  after  morning,  the  promise  of  hope 
and  of  all  light. 

Oh !  my  dearly  beloved,  let  us  consider  her  as  she  appeared; 
in  the  designs  of  God.  Let  us  consider  her  as  she  shone 
here  upon  the  earth.  Let  us  consider  her  in  her  subsequent 
shining,  as  she  shines  to-day  in  heaven.  We  shall  behold 
throughout,  the  triple  glory  of  the  Morning  Star,  the  purest 
and  the  fairest  of  all  God's  creatures,  whoj  like  an  unspotted 
mirror,  throws  back  upon  the  earth,  the   undiminished  bright- 

19* 


290  Mary,  the  Morning  Star. 

ness  and  the  concentrated  rays  of  all  the  sanctity  and  of  all 
the  graces  of  God.  Let  us  consider  her  as  she  appears  before 
our  eyes,  as  Almighty  God  rends  the  veil  of  His  divine 
revelation,  when  the  Evangelist  of  Patmos  was  privileged  to 
stand  in  spirit  at  the  very  gate  of  heaven,  and  to  look  back 
into  the  things  that  were  begun  before  the  earth  was  made  ; 
before  the  mountains  were  formed  ;  before  the  hills  were 
set  upon  their  bases ;  before  the  waves  of  the  sea  had  begun 
to  roll  under  the  passing  breeze  that  flitted  over  its  bosom. 
He  stood  for  a  moment,  by  divine  inspiration,  at  heaven's 
gate.  Almighty  God  lifted  up  the  veil  that  concealed  the 
past  from  human  ken.  What  was  the  first  thing  the  Evan- 
gelist beheld  ?  He  exclaims,  with  cries  of  joy,  and  as  if 
unable  to  contain  himself  with  delight :  "  I  beheld  a  great 
sign  which  appeared  in  the  heavens ;  a  woman  clothed  with 
the  sun,  with  the  moon  beneath  her  feet ;  and  on  her  head 
a  crown  of  twelve  stars  !  "  This  woman  was  Mary,  the  Queen 
of  Heaven,  the  Morning  Star,  as  she  appeared  before  the  eyes 
of  the  inspired  Evangelist. 

The  next  thing  that  he  beheld,  when  God  opened,  as  it  were, 
the  golden  gates  of  that  sanctuary  of  His  divine  Being  and 
eternal  council ;  there,  in  the  very  light  of  God  ;  that  light  in- 
accessible in  which  God  dwells  from  the  beginning ;  there,  in 
the  very  full  blaze  of  the  divine  counsels,  enshrined,  surrounded 
by  light ;  there,  in  the  very  heart  and  mind  of  God,  did  the 
Evangelist  behold,  with  eyes  illuminated  by  inspiration,  the 
vision  of  Mary  ;  for  so  it  was.  We  know  that  the  decree  of 
man's  redemption  was  eternal.  We  know  that  from  the  first  of 
that  eternity  that  never  had  a  dawning.  Almighty  God,  by  His 
will,  accomplished,  in  the  order  of  grace,  the  redemption  that 
was  already  determined  in  His  unbeginning,  eternal,  immutable 
decrees.  Therefore  it  is,  that  the  Holy  Ghost,  in  Scripture, 
says,  that  the  Son  of  God,  the  Second  Person  of  the  Blessed 
Trinity,  is  "  the  Redeemer  from  everlasting ;  from  eternity  was 
Thy  name,"  the  name  of  the  Word.  During  countless  millions 
of  years — the  measure  of  time  by  which  poor  human  minds 
try  to  span  the  limitless  past  of  eternity — the  Word  begotten 
of  the  Father  was  the  Redeemer.  In  the  counsels  of  God  in 
the  beginning,  all  things  in  that  eternal  past  looked  forward  to 
the  day  when  the  Word  should  become  flesh,  and  take  our^ 


^  Mary,  the  Morning  Star.  291 

nature  ;  and  in  that  nature  suffer  and  shed  His  blood  to  redeem 
mankind.  This  was  the  centre  point  of  all  the  designs  of  God, 
from  the  beginning ;  and  to  this,  all  things  looked  forward  from 
the  day  of  creation.  So,  now,  unto  the  consummation-  of  the 
world,  and  during  the  eternity  of  heaven,  all  things  shall  look 
back  to  their  centre — to  the  moment  that  beheld  Jesus  Christ 
on  the  cross.  "  The  Redeemer  from  everlasting  is  Thy  name." 
All  things  were  prepared  and  formed  ;  all  things  were  only, 
within  the  will  of  God,  looking  towards  the  redemption.  Man 
was  created  that  he  might  be  redeemed.  All  things  were  pre- 
pared by  the  Almighty  God,  and  still  worked  towards  this 
great  mystery  of  the  Incarnation.  The  very  sin  of  man  was 
made  the  means,  in  the  hands  of  His  mercy,  to  bring  about  the 
consummation  of  the  mystery.  Wherefore,  St.  Augustine  ex- 
claims:  "Oh!  happy  sinner!  Oh!  happy  sin!  that  brought 
Christ  down  from  heaven  to  be  made  man  for  our  redemp- 
tion ! " 

Now,  may  I  ask  you  to  consider  what  this  mystery  of  the 
Incarnation  is,  as  it  was  unfolded  in  the  designs  of  God.  My 
friends,  it  means  two  great  truths,  namely,  that  in  all  the  full- 
ness of  His  divinity,  in  all  His  infinite  sanctity,  majesty,  power, 
glory,  and  omnipotence,  God  came  down  from  heaven  and 
dwelt  amongst  men.  That  coming  down  from  heaven  He 
ceased  not  to  be  the  co-Eternal  Son  of  the  Eternal  Father  ; 
that  coming  down  from  heaven  He  ceased  not  to  be  the  Word 
of  God,  begotten,  not  made,  consubstantial  to  the  Father  in 
every  attribute  of  His  divinity — the  very  figure  of  the  Father's 
substance,  and  the  splendor  of  His  glory;  that  He  was  from 
all  eternity,  in  heaven,  the  same  as  He  was  during  the  days  of 
His  natural  life  upon  this  earth.  That  is  the  first  great  truth 
of  the  Incarnation.  We  must  admit  the  fullness  of  the  divin- 
ity of  Him  who  came  down  from  heaven  to  save  us.  If  it  were 
possible — (it  was  not  possible  ;  but  if  it  were  possible) — for  Him 
to  leave  behind  Him  one  single  attribute  or  perfection  of  the 
Godhead,  the  world  could  never  be  redeemed.  For,  in  order 
to  take  away  the  sin  of  man,  it  was  necessary  that  God  should 
exercise  all  His  power,  all  His  sanctity,  every  attribute  belong- 
ing to  Him,  and  so  engage  in  the  mighty  work  of  atonement  to 
His  offended  Father  for  the  sins  of  man. 

The  second  great  truth  is,  that  coming  down  from  heaven  in 


292  Mary,  the  Morning  Star. 

all  the  fullness  of  His  divinity,  He  took  on  earth — He  formed 
and  created  on  this  earth — a  true  manhood,  a  true  human  na- 
ture;  for  He  was  as  really  and  as  truly  Man  as  He  was  God; 
He  was  as  really  and  truly  the  Son  of  His  Mother  upon  the 
earth,  as  He  was  the  Son,  the  Eternal  Son  of  His  Father  in 
heaven.  The  second  truth  is  as  necessary  for  the  redemption 
of  the  world  as  the  first.  The  world  could  never  be  redeemed 
unless  God  came  down  in  all  the  fullness  of  His  divinity ;  in  all 
the  fullness  of  His  sanctity.  The  world  could  never  be  re- 
deemed unless  God  became  truly  Man  ;  as  truly  a  Man  as  He 
is  truly  God.  The  manhood  of  Jesus  Christ,  our  Lord,  was  as 
necessary  for  the  redemption  of  mankind  as  His  divinity;  just 
as  necessary.  In  the  eternal  designs  and  decrees  of  the  uncre- 
ated wisdom  of  God,  the  mystery  of  the  humanity  of  His  Di- 
vine Son  is  necessarily  as  precisely  included,  as  the  certainty 
of  His  divinity. 

This  is  the  second  great  truth  upon  which  the  Incarnation 
rests.  And  this  mystery  of  the  Incarnation  is  the  very  founda- 
tion and  basis  of  that  Christian  religion  which  we  all  profess. 
Deny  the  divinity  of  Jesus  Christ  ;  deny,  to  that  Man,  bleeding, 
suffering,  dying  on  the  cross,  one  iota,  or  one  attribute  of  God, 
and  you  have  ceased  to  be  a  Christian ;  you  are  an  Atheist  and 
an  Infidel.  On  the  other  hand,  deny  to  Him  one  single  iota  of 
His  sacred  humanity  ;  take  from  Him  any  one  thing  that  makes 
the  man,  the  true  man ;  and  you  are  in  like  manner  an  Atheist 
and  an  Infidel,  and  no  longer  believe  in  the  fundamental  truths 
of  Christianity.  Now,  what  follows  from  this  ?  Let  me  remind 
you  that  I  am  speaking  of  these  things  as  they  lay  in  the  mind 
of  God  through  all  eternity.  The  Word  uncreated,  the  Eternal 
Word  of  God,  was  begotten  of  the  Father  from  out  the  contem- 
plation of  His  own  divine  perfection  by  the  eternal  generation 
that  never  had  a  beginning.  A  mystery  utterly  inscrutable  and 
incomprehensible  to  the  limited  mind  of  man !  The  Eternal 
Father  gazes  upon  Himself,  contemplates  Himself  from  all  eter- 
nity ;  and  in  that  contemplation  of  Himself,  He  saw  Himself  in 
the  Word.  He  could  not  but  love,  with  an  infinite,  substantial 
love,  that  image  of  Himself — that  divine,  eternal  conception  of 
Himself,  which  He  beheld  in  the  image  or  conception  which 
was  itself  substantially  and  personally  distinct  from  the  Father 
who  conceived  it.     When  God  saw  that  conception  He  was  full 


Mary,  the  Morning  Star.  293 

of  love — with  the  infinite  love  of  the  Father.  Behold,  in  this 
substantial,  infinite  love  of  God  foi  His  own  image,  for  His  own 
conception,  behold  the  Third  Person  of  the  Blessed  Trinity — 
the  Holy  Ghost.  Now,  in  this  mystery  of  the  Incarnation, 
therefore,  God,  the  Father,  contemplated  Himself  as  the  Father 
of  the  Word,  who  was  to  redeem  man — "  the  Redeemer  from 
everlasting."  But  He  was  also  obliged  to  contemplate  that 
Word  not  merely  as  God — as  His  own  divine,  eternal  concep- 
tion ;  He  was  also  obliged  to  contemplate  that  Word  made 
man ;  because  He  was  obliged  to  contemplate  Him  as  the  Re- 
deemer ;  and  the  moment  the  Father's  eyes  conceived  Him 
from  all  eternity,  that  moment  the  figure  of  the  human  Mother, 
Mary,  entered  into  her  place,  to  play  her  part  in  the  eternal 
councils  of  God,  namely,  to  be  as  necessary  for  the  salvation 
and  redemption  of  man  as  God  was  Himself.  It  may  sound 
strange  to  say  that  Mary  was  as  necessary  for  our  redemption 
as  God  Himself.  If  the  Son  of  Mary  was  to  be  the  Son  of  God, 
and  the  Son  of  God  was  the  son  of  Mary,  the  Man,  Jesus  Christ, 
was  to  be  the  Redeemer.  As  such  the  Father  contemplated 
Him  from  all  eternity ;  as  such  He  stands  before  us  in  those 
everlasting,  eternal  decrees  and  counsels  of  God ;  and  by  His 
side  stands  Mary,  the  necessary,  indispensable  instrument  by 
whi:h  God  was  to  take  the  humanity  in  which  He  redeemed 
the  world.  Therefore  it  is  that  the  holy  Catholic  Church  ap- 
plies to  her  the  words  of  Scripture,  as  she  says  :  "  I  was  or- 
dained from  all  eternity  ;  of  old  before  the  hills  were  made,  be- 
fore the  rivers  began  to  flow,  before  the  earth  sprang  forth  at 
the  creation  of  God."  Before  the  eye  of  an  angel  in  heaven 
contemplated  the  eternal  perfections  of  the  divinity,  Mary  occu- 
pied the  first  place  in  the  mind,  and  in  the  counsels  and  designs 
of  the  eternal  God,  robed  and  clothed  with  the  glory  of  the 
eternal  Son,  for  He,  in  the  designs  of  God,  shed  the  full  splen- 
dor of  His  sanctity  upon  her  ; — the  moon  beneath  her  feet,  that 
is  to  say,  the  present  earth — the  earth  which  was  to  be  made 
in  the  creation  of  God  ; — the  earth  that  was  to  be  a  great  cres- 
cent in  the  following  creation  of  the  universe  by  the  word  of 
God — now  making  the  earth  ;  then  making  the  sea ;  then  cre- 
ating animated  life;  then  man,  in  succession; — this  crescent 
earth  was  beneath  her  feet,  by  which  it  was  signified  that  she 
was  to  be  the  queen  of  the  whole  universe — the  mother  of  its 


294  Mary,  the  Morning  Star. 

King,  Jesus  Christ,  On  her  head  a  crown  of  twelve  stars  ; — the 
stars  of  God,  the  angeHc  beings  created  in  heaven — higher  than 
Mary,  if  you  will ;  higher  than  Mary  in  the  order  of  grace  ;  be- 
cause, great  as  she  was,  she  was  still  somewhat  less  than  the 
angels  in  the  dignity  of  creation.  Greater,  therefore,  than  Mary 
in  the  order  of  grace,  those  angels  represent  her  crown  of  twelve 
stars — above  her  head,  yet  shining  only  as  the  crown,  as  the  or- 
nament of  her  queenly  beauty.  The  choirs  of  God's  angels 
looked  down  upon  her  from  their  high  places  in  heaven  whilst 
she  trod  the  pathways  of  earth ;  but  every  angel  in  heaven  was 
created  to  be  an  ornament  of  their  queen  and  ours,  of  heaven's 
Queen,  Mary.  For  every  angel  in  heaven  was  preserved,  saved, 
and  confirmed  in  grace  and  in  glory,  through  the  merits  fore- 
seen of  Mary's  Child,  Jesus  Christ.  How  grand,  therefore,  was 
the  vision  that  the  apostle  beheld — the  vision  of  the  one  being, 
around  whom  are  concentrated,  and  in  whom  were  to  be  made 
perfect,  the  eternal  designs  that  filled  the  infinite  mind  of  God, 
from  the  day  that  never  had  a  beginning.  The  Morning  Star 
rose  in  heaven  ;  the  Morning  Star,  in  her  rising,  did  not  begin 
upon  the  earth,  my  dear  friends  ;  Mary  rose  in  heaven.  Her 
dawning  was  not  merely  in  that  house  where  she  was  born  of 
St.  Ann.  Her  dawning  was  in  the  mind  and  in  the  heart  of 
God  ;  her  Immaculate  Conception  upon  earth  was  only  the  re- 
flection, pure  and  magnificent,  of  the  higher  and  more  wonder- 
ful and  infinitely  grander  and  greater  conception  with  which  the 
mind  of  God  conceived  Mary  as  the  future  Mother  of  His  Son. 
Consider  here,  next,  the  Morning  Star  on  earth.  The  very 
vision  of  which  the  Evangelist  spoke  was  beheld  by  the  angels 
in  heaven  before  Mary  was  created  at  all.  The  angels  of  heaven, 
who  were  given  to  behold  the  designs  of  God,  saw  Mary  on  the 
earth,  and  beneath  her  feet,  and  clothing  them,  the  sun  of  the 
real  sanctity  of  God  ;  her  crown — their  choirs — as  they  shone 
around  her  in  the  mind  and  the  designs  of  God.  The  angels 
heralded  her  as  the  Morning  Star  in  heaven,  when  she  rose 
from  heaven,  trembling  in  her  majestic  beauty,  outshining  all  the 
other  stars  of  God  under  her  feet.  We  may  apply  to  her  the 
words  of  holy  Job,  when  he  says:  "The  morning  stars  praised 
the  Lord  together,  and  the  sons  of  God  made  a  joyful  melody," 
when  Maty  appeared  over  the  horizon  in  the  everlasting  and 
eternal  designs  of  the  Most  High. 


Mary,  the  Morning  Star.  295 

Now,  let  us  descend  from  heaven.  Even  as  the  inspired 
Evangelist  of  Patmos  came  down  from  the  mountain  of  his  in- 
spiration, and  looked  around  him  with  the  ordinary  eyes  of 
man  on  the  celestial  vision  as  it  passed  away  from  his  sight,  so 
let  us  descend  from  the  contemplation  of  Mary  in  heaven — in 
the  bosom  of  the  eternal  God — and  let  us  see  what  was  the 
manner  of  the  coming  of  this  Morning  Star.  Every  child  of 
our  nature  is  conceived  in  sin.  A  stain  of  sin  is  there  upon  the 
fair  young  soul  the  moment  that  soul  and  body  are  united — the 
first  moment  in  which  that  little  newly-conceived  child  begins 
to  live,  that  moment  the  traditional  curse  of  Adam  is  upon  him  ; 
and  the  fair  young  creature,  so  freshly  and  newly  formed  by 
the  hand  of  God,  is  already  spoiled  and  stained  by  original  sin. 
There  is  no  exception  to  this  universal  law  ;  because  Adam  was 
the  father  of  all  men,  and  "  we  have  all  sinned  in  Adam,"  says 
the  apostle.  No  matter  how  beautiful  the  future  of  that  soul 
may  be,  in  the  beginning  it  had  its  origin  in  the  curse ;  no 
matter  how  grand  the  sanctity  that  may  crown  the  future  life 
of  the  highest  of  God's  saints  and  holy  ones,  the  best  of  them 
all,  the  holiest  of  them  all — Moses,  who  was  "  exceeding 
righteous  before  all  men  upon  the  earth ;  "  David,  "  the  man 
after  God's  own  heart ;  "  the  Baptist,  who,  of  all  men  born  of 
woman,  was  the  greatest ;  the  apostle  of  love,  who  leaned  upon 
his  Master's  bosom,  and  listened  to  the  beating  of  the  heart  of 
God  to  the  last — all,  all  alike  are  obliged  to  exclaim,  in  the 
dreadful  accents  of  Israel's  prophet-king:  "  Have  mercy  on  me, 
O  God  !  for  I  was  conceived  in  iniquity ;  and  in  sin  did  my 
mother  conceive  me  !  "  No  exception  but  one  !  One  solitary 
instance  stands  out  alone,  with  nothing  to  approach  her  at  all,  in 
her  exceptional,  exclusive  creation.  Mary  alone  stands  out,  from 
the  first  moment  of  her  conception,  when,  descending  from  out 
the  mind  of  God,  when,  breathed  forth  with  infinite  love  from 
the  lips  of  God,  the  inspiration  of  life  in  the  soul  of  Mary  came 
from  the  bosom  of  the  Most  High.  Her  untainted  body  un- 
stained, untouched,  unapproached  by  the  slightest  taint  of  sin — 
alone  she  stands ;  and  the  angels  of  God  look  down  and  con- 
template her  and  admire  her.  The  voice  of  the  prophets  comes 
back  from  out  the  recesses  of  the  past,  and  salute  her,  "■  My 
beloved,"  says  the  Holy  Ghost,  in  Scripture,  "  My  beloved,  my 
sister,  my  immaculate  one,  my  dove,  is  all  pure.     She  is  all  fair; 


296  Mary,  the  Morning  Star. 

no  stain  nor  soil  is  upon  her."     "  Tota  pulchra  es,  amata  mea.' 
"  Thou  art  all  fair,  my  beloved,  and  there  is  no  stain  upon 
thee." 

This  was  the  promise  made  to  the  people  of  Israel  in  the 
depths  of  their  sorrow,  whilst  they  hung  their  voiceless  harps 
upon  the  willows  of  Babylon — even  whilst  they  wept  fruitless 
tears  over  the  glory  of  the  temple  which  had  passed  away  ;  even 
while  they  filled  the  earth  with  the  lamentations  of  their  exile, 
yet  were  they  cheered  with  the  promise   of  that  which  was  to 
come ;  and  the  Son  of  the  Father,  coming  to   this  earth  in  all 
sorrow,  was  to  bring  forth  out  of  the  chosen  and  most  beloved 
people  one  who  was  to  be  sinless  and  stainless  before  the  eyes 
and  the  heart  of  God.     "  Hear,  O  Israel !  "  says  Isaias,  "  Hear, 
O  Israel !     The  Lord   Himself  will  give  thee  a  sign  (that  is  to 
say,  a  promise).     The  Lord  Himself  will  set  a  star  in  Jesse,  and 
a  light  unto  Israel."     What  was  this  sign  to  be?     "Behold,  a 
virgin  shall  conceive,  and  shall  bring  forth  a  Son."     There  is 
the  promise.     There  is  Mary.     As  she  shines  in  heaven,  so  does 
she  shine  upon  the   inspired  page  of  Scripture — the  "  Morning 
Star,"  because  she  was  to  come  as  a   harbinger  and  messenger, 
and  as  a  certain  assurance  that  He  who  conceived  her  and  made 
her  would  come,  after  her  appearance  upon  the  earth,  to  visit 
this  world  in  her,  to  come  forth  from  her  immaculate  bosom, 
"  a  shining  light  unto  the  salvation  of  the  Gentiles,  and  a  glory 
unto   the  people  of  Israel."     Therefore,   upon  her  coming  in 
immaculate  purity — as  the  morning  star  is  the  brightest   of  all 
the  stars  that  shine  at  that   hour  in  the  heavens,  because  it  is 
nearest   to  the  sun — as   the  morning  star,  as  it  rises  over  the 
eastern   hills,  appears   with  a  pure,  silvery  light,  no   speck   or 
stain  upon  its  white  face,  no  darkness  amid  the  serene  rays  sent 
forth  streaming  from  its  silvery  bosom — so   Mary  comes  ;  and, 
in  her  coming  upon  the  earth,  she  was  surrounded  by  the  grace 
of  her  immaculate  conception,  and  at  once  raised  above  all  on 
this  earth,  above  all  in  heaven,  above  all  created  beings  in  their 
approaches  to  perfect  sanctity.     Preferred   before  the  angels ; 
and  why?     Because  there  is  not  an  angel  in  heaven  that  was 
not  tempted  ;  and  Mary's  immaculate  conception  in   heaven  re- 
moved   the    temptation    from    her.     Preferred    before    all    the 
daughters  of  earth  ;  for  no    child  of  earth,  from  the  day  that 
AJam  fell,  was  ever  conceived  but  in  sin.    No  shade  or  thought 


Mary,  the  Morning  Star.  297 

to  sin  allied  ever  crossed  Mary,  even  in  the  first  moment  of  her 
conception.  More  than  this,  in  that  first  immaculate  concep- 
tion, the  woman  who  was  to  be  the  Mother  of  God — the  woman 
whose  figure  captivated  the  eye  of  God  in  His  own  eternal  de- 
signs and  counsels  from  all  eternity — the  woman  who  was  to  be 
the  glory  of  heaven  as  well  as  the  joy  of  the  earth,  in  that  one 
grace  of  her  immaculate  conception — the  woman  of  sanctity, 
the  woman  of  grace,  the  woman  in  whom  all  the  accumulated 
and  the  united  graces  that  God  had  ever  bestowed  upon  His 
angels  in  heaven,  or  upon  His  saints  upon  the  earth  ;  who  was 
perfectly  holy,  came  up  to  God's  own  standard  of  holiness,  and 
consequently,  she  was  united  to  God  by  a  perfect  union,  undi- 
vided by  the  slightest  taint  of  sin,  by  the  slightest  necessity  for 
a  tear  of  repentance.  The  Eternal  and  All  Holy  God  who  made 
her,  was  able  to  take  her,  at  the  moment  of  her  immaculate 
conception,  and  hold  her  in  His  arms  of  infinite  love  ;  and  she 
was  worthy  of  the  embrace  of  the  Most  High. 

Thus  does  she  appear  on  earth,  the  Morning  Star.  God 
could  not  come  forth,  my  friends — the  sun  of  justice  never  could 
beam  upon  us,  unless  some  one  creature  went  before  His  face 
that  was  perfectly  pure.  And  why  ?  Because  God  Himself 
declared  that  there  is  no  compact  or  contact  between  Him  and 
sin  ;  that  nothing  that  is  personally  defiled  can  approach  Him. 
Nothing  defiled  can  approach  God.  Nor  can  God  approach 
anything  that  is  personally  defiled  as  He  approached  Mary. 
If  this  be  true,  as  God  Himself  declared  in  Scripture,  you  see  at 
once  that  it  was  absolutely  necessary  that  the  one  unto  whom 
He  came — through  whom  He  came  upon  earth,  and  from  whom 
He  took  the  nature  in  which  He  saved  the  world — that  that 
person  should  be  perfectly  holy.  Admit  the  slightest  stain  of 
defilement  in  Mary — in  soul  or  body — and  that  moment  the 
eternal  Word  of  God  would  have  fled  from  her  with  that  in- 
finite repugnance  with  which  God  turns  away  from  the  slightest 
form  of  defilement.  But  grant  that  in  the  fallen  race,  in  the 
race  universally  fallen,  in  a  race  tainted  and  polluted  at  the 
very  fountain-head  of  its  existence  in  the  first  father — grant  in 
that  fallen  race  an  immaculate  one,  and  it  will  appear  at  once 
that  we  have  the  gates  of  heaven  opened  to  us  in  the  humanity 
of  that  one  ;  at  once  we  have  the  medium  through  which  God 
can  come  down  and  become  one  of  us.     Undefiled  humanity  is 


298  Mary,  the  Morning  Star. 

there.  Nothing  is  there  to  repel  Almighty  God,  or  make  Him 
hesitate  in  His  approach  to  us.  So  you  see,  out  of  her  very 
immaculate  conception  grows  Mary's  title  to  be  called  the 
"  Morning  Star." 

And  this  star  rose ;  a  blessed  child  was  born  in  the  house  of 
her  father,  the  holy  priest,  St.  Joachim.  Oh  !  how  dark  was 
the  earth  in  that  moment  of  Mary's  conception.  God  looked 
down  from  heaven  and  saw  nowhere  upon  the  earth  a  place  on 
which  His  Holy  Spirit  could  rest.  That  Spirit  that  never  forgot 
its  mercy,  for  four  thousand  years  brooded  over  the  abyss  of 
humanity.  "  The  Spirit  of  God  moved  over  the  waters  ;  "  but, 
like  the  dove  that  Noah  sent  forth  from  the  ark,  returned  again, 
having  found  no  place  to  rest  upon  for  an  instant.  So  the 
Spirit  of  God  returned  to  God  ;  there  was  no  resting-place  upon 
this  dark,  accursed  earth — no  resting-place  for  the  Spirit  of 
God,  that  was  holy  and  pure,  amongst  the  tainted  sons  and 
daughters  of  Adam.  The  Spirit  of  God  returned  to  God,  until 
Mary  appeared,  unfolding  the  unspotted  brightness  of  her  soul; 
unfolding  the  leaves  of  her  virginal  purity  before  God.  Then 
the  Spirit  of  God  found,  at  length,  its  resting-place,  and  came 
down  and  brooded  over  Mary  with  the  infinite  love  of  God,  as 
was  said  by  the  angel  to  Mary:  "The  power  of  the  Most  High 
shall  overshadow  thee."  The  Holy  Ghost  descended  at  His 
word,  and  Mary  became  the  Spouse  of  God. 

I  will  not  put  before  you,  nor  even  seek  to  unfold  the  tre- 
mendous mysteries,  for  I  can  call  them  nothing  else,  the  awful 
mysteries  of  that  life  of  thirty  years,  during  which  the  Eternal 
God,  made  man,  dwelt  upon  the  human  bosom,  and  grew  up 
under  the  hand,  and  repaid  every  maternal  service  by  a  love 
more  tender  than  ever  yet  child  gave  to  a  human  parent.  I 
will  not  seek  to  raise  up  the  veil  that  covers  the  mysteries  of 
that  life  in  Nazareth.  Suffice  it  to  say,  that  so  dear  was  Mary 
to  her  divine  Son,  that  he  lived  with  her  for  thirty  years.  He 
came  to  save  the  world.  He  came  to  do  a  certain  work ;  He 
took  thirty-three  years  to  that  work  ;  and  only  gave  three  years 
directly  to  it — the  three  last  years  of  His  life.  He  lingered  for 
thirty  years  with  Mary.  Her  love  was  the  light  of  His  human 
life  ;  her  smile  was  the  sunbeam  that  lighted  up  His  sorrowful 
path.  Yea,  when  He  went  forth  from  Nazareth,  as  if  reluctant 
to  leave  that  bosom  that  He  had  dwelt  upon  so  long — reluctant 


Mary,  the  Morning  Star.  299 

to  turn  His  thoughts  on  other  purposes — He  did  not  go  alone; 
but  Mary  went  with  Him,  accompanied  Him  in  tlis  business; 
heard  His  word  when  He  spoke  ;  saw  Him  in  the  horrors  of 
His  passion  ;  climbed  that  steep  hill  of  Calvary,  and  stood  be- 
neath the  cross  when  He  died,  and  took  His  head,  crowned 
with  thorns,  and  put  it  upon  her  bosom,  and  held  His  bleeding 
body  in  her  arms,  and  followed  Him  to  the  tomb,  through  the 
glories  of  His  resurrection,  and  then,  in  that  scene  of  the  As- 
cension, saw  Him  last  of  all.  She,  whose  glance  was  keener 
than  all  others,  because  intensified  by  her  maternal  love  as  well 
as  her  love  for  the  perfect  God,  penetrated  into  the  clouds,  and 
saw  into  the  brighter  region  beyond  ;  while  those  who  stood 
on  Olivet  had  long  lost  sight  of  Him,  Mary  still  beheld  Him. 
Her  keen  eyes  cleft  the  clouds;  her  affection  followed  Him 
even  to  the  threshold  of  the  golden  gates.  She  was  the  last  to 
lose  sight  of  her  Son  upon  the  earth. 

What  was  her  subsequent  life?  Twelve  years  of  hope  de- 
ferred ;  twelve  long  years  rolled  away  like  twelve  thousand 
years  over  Mary's  widowed  heart,  as  she  was  left  derelict  upon 
the  earth.  She  counted  every  moment  that  passed  in  the  ardent 
longing  and  sighing  of  her  heart  once  more  to  be  joined  to  her 
Son ;  she  counted  the  hours  as  they  rolled  slowly  away  ;  she 
felt  the  agony  of  hope  deferred,  a  burning  desire  to  depart, 
until  the  twelve  years  were  to  her  like  the  three  hours  of  agony 
when  her  Son  looked  up  to  heaven  and  cried :  "  Hast  Thou 
forsaken  me  ?  hast  Thou  forgotten  me,  O  Father  in  heaven  ?  " 
So  Mary  cried  to  God  in  her  widowed  exile.  To  leave  the 
earth  was  the  desire  of  her  soul.  She  had  lived  in  the  hap- 
piness and  sunshine  of  His  presence  for  the  thirty  years  of  His 
blessed  life ;  but  now  she  looks  in  vain  for  the  face  of  her  God 
and  of  her  child.  Oh  !  how  she  must  have  envied  the  lot  of 
the  first  martyrs  !  How  her  very  soul  went  forth  within  her, 
on  the  wings  of  desire,  to  accompany  the  soul  of  Stephen,  the 
first  martyr,  as  it  mounted  to  heaven,  and  laid  hold  on  that 
crown  which  to  Mary  was  denied.  But,  at  length,  she  passed 
away.  We  have  seen  her  as  the  "  Morning  Star  "  in  heaven, 
in  the  designs  of  God  ;  as  the  "  Morning  Star  "  on  earth,  in 
her  immaculate  conception,  and  her  divine  maternity.  What 
were  her  subsequent  glories  beyond  the  grave  that  God  had  not 
given  her  upon  earth  ?    The  happiness  here  was  only  given  her 


300  Mary,  the  Morning  Star. 

as  a  preparation  for  the  future  glory  of  heaven.  Her  graces 
were  to  come  upon  the  earth,  and  her  glory  was  to  begin  only 
at  the  moment  of  her  blessed  passing  away.  And  her  glory 
began  the  moment  that  her  virgin  soul  was  yielded  up,  and  she 
submitted  to  the  stroke  of  the  angel  of  death  that  had  conquered 
her  Son  upon  the  cross.  Then  her  glory  began  ;  her  first  glory, 
as  she  was  borne  into  heaven ;  and  there  she  beamed  again 
the  "  Morning  Star." 

It  was  fit  that  the  body  that  had  never  known  sin,  the  soul 
that  had  never  known  sin,  should  be  taken,  both  alike,  into  the 
redemption  and  glory  of  the  resurrection.  Why  is  it  that  we  die, 
and  that  the  saints  of  God  die,  and  that  their  bodies  are  changed 
and  see  corruption,  and  pass  into  the  earth  from  which  they 
were  made,  before  they  are  fitted,  by  the  last  resurrection,  to 
behold  the  glory  of  God  ?  Why,  because  the  taint  of  original 
sin  is  there  ;  because  this  flesh,  in  which  we  live  now,  is  sinful 
flesh;  therefore  it  must  perish;  therefore  it  must  be  utterly 
dissolved  ;  therefore,  like  the  grain  of  wheat  falling  into  the 
earth,  it  must  die  and  return  to  the  dust  from  which  it  sprang 
before  it  rises  to  new  life  again  ;  when,  in  the  moment  of  the 
resurrection,  the  soul  coming  down  from  heaven,  shall  be  united 
to  the  body,  and  made  a  pure,  newly-created  body,  a  soul  and 
body  indeed  new,  springing  into  new  life,  into  a  new  form  of 
being,  a  state  of  glory ;  and  when  that  body,  re-created  by  the 
Almighty  God  into  a  higher  purer,  and  better  being,  has  died 
a  perishable  body,  it  shall  rise  an  imperishable  body.  It  went 
down  to  the  grave  in  dishonor,  it  shall  rise  in  glory ;  it  went 
down  in  weakness,  it  shall  rise  in  power ;  it  went  down  to  the 
grave  a  corruptible  body,  it  shall  rise  a  spiritual  body.  But  it 
is  necessary  that  it  first  shall  go  down  to  the  grave,  and  resolve 
itself  into  the  dust,  into  its  first  elements,  in  order  that  God,  in 
the  purposes  of  His  everlasting  glory,  shall  bring  it  forth  to 
eternity  and  glory.  If  Adam  had  never  sinned,  neither  soul 
nor  body  of  man  would  have  known  corruption.  Adam  never 
sinned  in  Mary,  because  she  was  saved  from  sin — saved  as  really 
and  truly  as  we  are.  The  same  blood  which  Christ  shed,  and 
which  falls  upon  our  heads  in  baptism,  fell  upon  her  with  a  pre- 
venting grace,  as  He  hung  nailed  to  the  cross  of  Calvary,  as  He 
was  stretched  out  to  take  away  the  taint  of  original  sin.  "  My 
spirit  has  rejoiced  in  God  my  Saviour,"  she  herself  says.     That 


Mary,  the  Morning  Star,  301 

soul  and  body  were  perfectly  pure  and  untainted,  as  far  as  re- 
gards Adam's  sin.  Wc  may  say  in  truth  that  he  never  sinned 
in  Mary. 

Why  should  she  ever  die  that  gave  flesh  and  blood  to  the 
Son  of  God  ?  She,  in  order  to  be  worthy  of  that,  was  created 
with  infinite  purity.  Why  should  she  be  resolved  into  the  first 
elements  of  her  being?  What  necessity  was  there  that  the 
Almighty  God  should  reduce  that  body  to  its  native  dust  ?  He 
could  form  nothing  purer  for  the  glory  of  the  resurrection.  He 
makes  us  much  fairer,  much  more  beautiful,  as  we  rise  into 
glory,  than  what  we  were  in  our  best  days  ;  He  makes  us  full 
of  the  sanctity  of  our  immortal  life.  But  He  could  not  make 
Mary  more  beautiful  than  she  was,  because,  created  as  she  was, 
she  received  all  the  sanctity,  all  the  perfection,  which  was  in  the 
power  of  God  to  put  into  the  creature.  And  all  that  the  crea- 
ture could  contain  of  grace,  sanctity,  and  spiritual  beauty,  Mary 
had  in  her  first  creation.  The  Almighty  God,  therefore,  saw  in 
her  a  perfect  being,  and  no  necessity  whatever  to  re-create 
Mary,  she  was  created  so  fair.  Just  as  the  master-hand  of  the 
painter  rests,  when  he  has  painted  his  magnificent  picture,  and 
sees  it  perfect  in  every  detail,  subdued  and  toned  down  by  the 
master-hand  of  him  who  laid  it  on  ;  every  ray  of  light  is  there 
in  magnificent  outlines;  every  shadow  brought  out  in  all  its 
perfection  ;  until,  at  length,  the  master-hand  and  mind  are  sat- 
isfied, and  he  sees  he  can  do  nothing  better — that  the  keen  eye 
of  art  will  not  permit  of  anything  higher  in  conception  than 
this.  So  God  made  Mary  as  perfect  as  a  creature  could  be. 
Not  a  single  perfection  which  a  creature  needed  was  denied  her. 
Why,  therefore,  should  she  behold  corruption  and  linger  in  the 
tomb,  or  why  should  the  worm  feed  upon  her  virgin  flesh  ?  And 
why  should  the  eyes  that  were  first  to  greet  the  infant  Saviour, 
the  Son  of  God,  dissolve  into  hideous  corruption  ?  No !  She 
was  fit  for  heaven,  a  being  fit  for  eternity,  and  therefore  God 
took  her.  The  apostles  were  at  her  grave,  and  for  three  days — 
three  years  they  seemed — they  prayed  around  her  grave,  mourn- 
ing their  Mother  and  Queen.  During  these  three  days,  they 
heard  the  choirs  of  the  angels  filling  the  air  with  melody.  It 
was  not  a  song  of  sorrow ;  it  was  a  song  of  angelic  joy.  There 
were  no  tears  in  that  song,  but  only  the  jubilant  strains  that 
proclaimed  that  heaven  was  about  to  receive  a  new  star.     At 


302  Mary,  the  Morning  Star. 

the  end  of  the  third  day  the  angelic  voices  died  away  on  the 
air. 

Before  the  apostles  scattered  to  their  various  provinces,  they 
would  fain  take  a  last  lingering  look  on  the  heavenly  counte- 
nance of  Mary.  So  they  opened  the  tomb.  No  body  was 
there  !  They  sought  for  the  living  amongst  the  dead  !  They 
opened  the  tomb  ;  she  was  gone  ;  and  the  creature  whom  they 
expected  to  find  in  the  darkness  and  corruption,  and  the  help- 
lessness of  the  grave,  had  already  passed  through  the  gates  of 
heaven.  The  soul  had  already  passed  through  the  wondering 
choirs  of  God's  angels,  who  could  only  exclaim  :  "  Who  is  this 
that  Cometh  up  from  the  desert,  flowing  with  delights,  leaning 
upon  her  beloved  ?  Who  is  this  coming  to  us  like  the  morn- 
ing's rising;  fair  as  the  moon,  bright  as  the  sun,  glorious  as  an 
army  in  battle  array?  It  is  the  Queen  and  the  Mother  of  our 
Eternal  King.  Let  us  rejoice  and  be  glad  ;  the  marriage  of  the 
Lamb  has  come,  and  the  bride  cometh ;  she  has  arrayed  herself 
in  all  her  glory."  They  sought  for  her  upon  the  earth,  but  she 
had  already  passed  into  the  upper  light,  high  above  all  the 
thrones  of  the  flaming  cherubim  and  contemplating  seraphim — 
the  Mother  of  God  had  already  passed  into  the  higher  atmos- 
phere of  light  eternal,  into  which  no  created  being  could  go  but 
Mary.  There,  upon  a  throne,  at  the  very  pedestal  of  the  throne 
of  God,  she  was  crowned,  with  a  crown  of  unfading  glory — the 
"  Morning  Star."  What  does  this  Assumption  tell  us?  It  tells 
us  what  her  immaculate  conception  was?  It  tells  us  what  the 
vision  of  the  Evangelist  of  Patmos  beheld.  It  tells  us  that, 
while  he  was  there  in  heaven,  he  recognized  only  the  woman  who 
was  to  bring  forth  the  Man-Child  that  was  to  crush  the  serpent's 
head.  We  saw  her  in  her  immaculate  conception,  beaming  in 
all  her  first  beauty  and  brilliancy  on  the  earth ;  as  she  was  hon- 
ored with  the  certain  fulfillment  of  the  promise  that  God  would 
come,  in  whom  the  Holy  One,  undefiled,  had  made  His  appear- 
ance, through  whom  alone  God  could  come.  Her  presence  in 
heaven  told  of  His  coming  ;  her  presence  on  the  earth  told  of 
His  coming.  Now,  her  Assumption  into  heaven  tells  of  His  com- 
ing ;  for  it  tells  the  greatest  of  all  truths — that  heaven  is  the 
home,  not  only  of  the  immortal,  glorified  soul,  but  also  of  the 
risen  body.  It  tells  in  the  light  of  truth,  that,  in  the  day  of 
our  resurrection,  we  may  look  forward  to  Him  who  came  from 


Mary,  the  Morning  Star.  303 

heaven  that  He  might  take  Mary  aloft  to  her  place  of  glory. 
Wherefore  they  say — "  She  comes  flowing  with  delights,  lean- 
ing on  her  beloved."  He  came  down  from  heaven  to  assume 
her  into  heaven.  So  shall  He  come  and  stand  over  our  graves 
— the  Redeemer,  at  whose  word  all  things  were  made.  Out  of 
the  corrupt  earth,  out  of  the  ashes  of  the  tomb,  will  He  bring 
forth  our  bodies,  glorified,  shining,  robed  with  the  sun,  and  the 
stars  of  God  upon  our  heads,  if  we  are  only  worthy  of  the  resur- 
rection. For  He  said  :  "  I  will  raise  him  up  at  the  last  day." 
Therefore,  Mary's  assumption  tells  us  of  our  hope,  tells  us  of 
the  future,  reveals  to  us  the  promise  that  heaven  is  before  us. 
And,  thus,  as  all  things  in  heaven  looked  from  the  beginning 
of  eternity  to  the  incarnation  of  the  Son  of  God  in  Mary,  as  all 
things,  unto  the  consummation  of  eternity,  shall  look  back  to 
that  mystery  of  eternity  consummated  in  Mary ;  so  our  hopes, 
beginning  with  heaven's  "  Morning  Star" — our  hopes,  reviving 
in  earth's  "Morning  Star" — our  hopes,  looking  forward  to 
heaven — as  she  is  to-day,  so  shall  we  be  some  day  or  other, 
with  glorified  bodies  shining  in  the  brightness  of  our  glory. 
Therefore,  she  is  still  the  "  Morning  Star,"  How  well  that 
name  befits  her !  How  beautiful,  in  our  loneliness,  the  name 
of  Mary  falls  upon  our  ears.  It  fell  like  a  beam  of  pure  light 
upon  this  world.  Mary  came ;  and  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of 
God,  came  with  her.  Mary  lay  dead  upon  the  earth ;  and 
Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of  God,  came  to  our  earth,  and  took  her 
to  heaven.  Oh,  "  our  Hope !  "  O  Mother,  grant  that  when 
we  also  are  lying  in  the  prostration  and  agony  of  our  last  disso- 
lution— when  those  hearts  of  ours  throb  faintly  and  more  faintly 
in  the  last  terrible  agonies  of  death — when  our  voices  grow  faint 
and  weak  in  grappling  with  that  terrible  angel — our  hopes  are, 
O  "  Morning  Star,"  that  thou  wilt  come  down  from  heaven, 
and  bring  Jesus,  thy  divine  Son,  with  thee,  to  sustain  us  in  our 
last  moments.  "  O  Holy  Mary,  Mother  of  God,  pray  for  us, 
now  and  at  the  hour  of  our  death." 


THE  FUTURE  OF  THE  IRISH  RACE 
AT  HOME  AND  ABROAD. 


[Delivered   in   the   Music   Hall,  Boston,  Mass.,  for  the   benefit   of  the  Convent 
schools,  Cambridgeport,  Mass.,  on  Tuesday  evening,  Sept.  29,  1872.] 

Y  FRIENDS :  I  am  reminded  by  the  very  title  of  this 
subject  of  the  difficulty  it  presents.  If  I  were  adher- 
ing to  my  first  resolution  of  lecturing  on  "  The  Lights 
and  Shades  of  the  Irish  Character,"  I  might  fall  back 
upon  the  past.  The  past  is  the  common  property  of  all  men ;  its 
pages  are  open  to  all  alike,  so  that  "  he  who  runs  may  read." 
Or,  if  I  were  speaking  of  any  question  of  the  present,  I  could 
appeal  to  living  witnesses  for  support,  and  my  task  would  be 
comparatively  easy.  But  when  I  come  to  speak  of  the  future, 
you  might  well  stop  me  at  the  outset,  and  ask  me  do  I  pretend 
to  be  a  prophet  or  an  inspired  man. 

I  am  no  prophet,  and  yet  I  feel  in  my  heart  and  mind  that  I 
can  speak  confidently  of  the  future  of  my  race  and  people,  at 
home  and  abroad.  I  can  define  pretty  accurately  what  that 
future  is  to  be,  and  I  can  define  it  with  certainty,  provided 
the  men  of  the  Irish  race,  and  name,  and  blood,  in  America, 
would  accept  what  I  offer,  and  on  the  conditions  with  which  the 
offer  is  made.  Where  do  I  find  the  key  for  Ireland's  future  ? 
I  find  it  in  the  history  of  the  past.  Every  race,  every  people, 
have  their  history,  have  their  tale  to  tell  of  joy  or  of  sorrow,  of 
triumph  and  of  shame  ;  and  amongst  the  family  of  nations,  we 
Celtic  Irishmen  have  our  history  to  look  back  upon  ;  a  history 
covering  many  centuries,  and  going  back  to  as  ancient  and  hon- 
orable a  source  as  any  people  on  the  face  of  God's  earth.  And 
from  its  earliest  beginnings  down  to  the  present  hour,  although 
the  history  of  the  Irish  race  is  written  on  many  a  page  in  tears 


The  Future  of  the  Irish  Race.  305 

and  in  blood,  and  although  it  tells  of  centuries  of  unavailing 
struggles  and  defeats,  and  of  a  people  ground  into  the  very  dust, 
it  is  still  a  history  of  which  no  Irishman  need  be  ashamed.  It 
is  into  that  past  and  its  records  I  wish  you  to  look,  in  order 
to  find  what  was  the  source  and  secret  of  whatever  strength  and 
glory  belonged  to  the  race  in  the  past,  and  also  therein  to  find 
the  cause  of  the  ruin  and  misery  that  fell  upon  our  people ;  for 
in  truth,  "  coming  events  cast  their  shadows  before."  The  sur- 
est guaranty  for  a  people's  future  is  to  be  found  in  the  history 
of  their  past ;  the  secret  of  what  they  may  accomplish  and  what 
they  may  hope  for  in  the  future,  is  to  be  found  in  the  record  of 
the  days  that  are  gone. 

Let  us  look  into  that  past  history  of  the  Irish  race.  What 
were  the  sources  of  its  greatness  and  the  secrets  of  its  ruin  ? 
We  should  examine  these,  in  order  that  we  may  cultivate  all 
that  made  our  fathers  great ;  and  that  we  may  avoid,  taught  by 
the  light  of  experience,  the  mistakes  into  which  they  fell. 
Coming  to  this  question,  one  of  the  first  things  I  find  in  study- 
ing the  history  of  my  people  is  that  the  Celtic  race  is  prom- 
inently gifted  with  one  great  blessing,  namely,  great  strength  of 
character. 

Do  we  not  often  find  in  life  a  man  exercising  the  strongest  in- 
flluence  over  his  fellow-men  ;  a  man  who  is  a  power  in  every 
walk  of  life,  social,  political,  and  domestic ;  a  man  who  makes 
his  presence  felt  wherever  he  is?     He  may  not  have  greater 
abilities  or  more  learning  than  others  ;  he  may  not  be  more  tal- 
ented than  other  men  ;  and  yet  he  has  a  power  of  influencing  his 
fellow-men  and  making  them  bow  down  to  his  will ;  he  has  a 
power   over   their   acts.     Such   a   man,    we   siay,    has    unusual 
strength  of  character.     Very  often  we  find  men  who  are  highly 
educated,  clever,  and  virtuous,  and  yet   they  have  no   influence 
over  their  fellow-men  ;   and  we  say  it  is  a  pity  that  so  good  a 
man  has  so  little  force  of  character.     As  it  is  with  men,  so  it  is 
with    nations.     There   are  some  nations  that  have   not  made 
any  enduring   mark  in  history.       They   are  without   force   of 
character.     Without  that,  no  race  can  write  its  name  on  the 
imperishable  annals  of  the  world's  history.      This  is  the  first 
characteristic  of  the  Celtic  or  Irish   race.     This   characteristic 
goes  so  far  as  to  manifest  itself  in  the  type  of  countenance  of 
the  people.     It  is  easy  to  know  an  Irishman  by  his  face.    Al- 


3o6  The  Future  of  the  Irish  Race 

though  he  may  not  be  as  good-looking  as  his  neighbors,  although 
his  features  may  not  show  the  magnificent  line  of  Grecian 
beauty,  although  he  may  lack  the  rolling  blue  eye  and  clear 
skin  of  the  Saxon,  there  is  a  type  in  the  face  of  an  Irishman 
that  tells  the  world  where  he  comes  from.  I  remember  a 
man  coming  up  to  me  in  a  public  conveyance  once,  in  France. 
He  said  to  me,  "Are  you  an  Irishman?"  "Yes,"  said  I,  "I 
am;  and  you're  another."  "Well,"  said  he,  *' I  thought  you 
were ;  for  I'd  almost  know  an  Irishman  if  he  was  half  burnt." 

The  national  character  is  more  deeply  engraved  on  the  soul  of 
the  Irishman  than  on  his  face.  Strong  and  deep  convictions, 
vivid  imagination,  and  a  power  of  realizing  things  unseen  ;  that 
which  makes  the  poet,  that  which  lends  inspiration  to  the  orator 
— all  that  is  strongly  brought  out  in  the  characteristics  of  the 
Irish  race.  The  surest  proof  of  the  truth  of  this  assertion  lies 
in  the  history  of  the  people. 

It  is  a  singular  fact  that  no  people  ever  yet  came  in  contact 
with  the  Irish  without  being  absorbed  by  them  and  changed 
into  Irishmen.  And  this  in  clear  contradiction  to  the  experience 
of  what  occurred  in  other  countries.  For  instance,  the  rule, 
as  shown  by  the  history  of  the  world,  is,  that  when  one  nation 
is  conquered,  the  conquerors  absorb  the  conquered  ;  the 
more  powerful  race  not  only  gives  laws,  but  tone,  to  the  national 
character  of  the  people  it  has  overcome.  The  Romans,  in 
ancient  history,  conquered  the  greater  part  of  the  world.  Their 
language  spread  to  Italy,  then  it  crossed  the  Alps,  and  spread 
into  Gaul,  and  it  never  stopped  till  it  reached  England  on  the 
one  side,  and  the  far  Asiatic  nations,  the  garden  of  humanity, 
on  the  other.  Such  was  the  strength  of  the  Roman  character 
that  they  not  only  gave  language  and  laws  to  the  people  whom 
they  conquered,  but  they  uprooted  and  destroyed  their  national 
characteristics,  and  changed  them  into  mere  Roman  citizens. 
The  inhabitants  of  Tuscany,  after  severe  struggles  with  Rome, 
became  Roman  citizens  ;  the  Greeks,  turning  away  from  their 
own  grand  record,  became  mere  Roman  citizens  ;  the  Gaul  for- 
got the  traditions  of  his  ancient  forest  liberty,  and  became  a 
mere  Roman  citizen  ;  even  in  England,  when  the  Briton  came 
in  contact  with  the  strongly-marked  Roman,  he  lost  his  native 
character,  and  became  so  much  in  heart  a  Roman,  that  the  peo- 
ple wept  when  the  legions  were  withdrawn. 


at  Home  and  Abroad.  307 

Now  we  have  successive  waves  of  invasion  passing  over 
Ireland  in  her  history  as  a  nation.  The  Danes,  at  the  close 
of  the  eighth  century — the  powerful  Danes,  so  full  of 
character  and  strength  of  disposition  ;  the  Danes,  who,  landing 
on  the  northern  shores  of  France,  soon  changed  the  French- 
men into  Normans  or  Northmen  ;  these  Danes  came  to 
Ireland.  For  three  hundred  years  army  after  army  was 
poured  into  the  country.  But  the  Dane  met  a  character  as 
well-defined  as  his  own.  Foot  to  foot  the  Celt  fought  with 
him,  until  the  day  came  when  the  invader  was  driven  into 
the  sea  from  the  glorious  field  of  Clontarf.  Those  of  the  Danes 
who  remained  in  Ireland  were  settled  in  Dublin,  Wicklow, 
Wexford,  and  Waterford,  and  became  "  more  Irish  than  the 
Irish  themselves."  They  embraced  the  religion  of  the  Irish 
people,  and  became  the  best  Catholics  on  the  island.  They 
learned  the  language  of  the  people,  and  soon  spoke  in  as  pure 
Celtic  as  any  Milesian.  They  embraced  the  undying,  inex- 
tinguishable love  for  the  land,  which  is  beyond  other  things  the 
inheritance  of  the  Celtic  race.  The  men  who  made  the  fiercest 
stand  after  that  for  Ireland,  were  the  descendants  of  the  Danish 
conquerors.  They  loved  the  island  better  than  the  Celts  them- 
selves. The  best  blood  shed  for  Ireland  in  the  rising  of  '98  was 
Danish  blood.  In  that  day,  when  the  whole  country  should  have 
risen,  two  counties  only  rose — Wicklow  and  Wexford.  A  hand- 
ful of  men  came  out,  armed  only  with  scythes  and  pikes,  and  for 
many  a  day  they  gave  thirty-six  thousand  English  troops 
enough  to  do.  They  were  finally  crushed  by  superior  numbers, 
but  they  were  unyielding  to  the  last,  and  the  green  slopes  of 
Vinegar  Hill  poured  their  blood  into  the  waters  of  the  Slaney, 
that  runs  at  its  base.  And  the  men  of  these  counties,  who  died 
on  Vinegar  Hill,  were  men  distinctively  of  Danish  blood.  For 
the  men  of  Wexford,  in  particular,  were  almost  exclusively 
descended  from  those  ancient  Danish  invaders.  How  did  they 
become  so  Irish  ?  I  answer,  by  the  simple  fact  that  the 
strong,  well-defined  Celtic  character  was  stamped  deeply  on  the 
strangers,  leaving  an  impression  that  the  hands  of  time  and 
change  could  never  rub  out. 

Still  more  wonderful  is  the  fact  which  I  am  now  about  to  re- 
late. Sixty  years  after  the  Danes  were  finally  conquered,  the 
Anglo-Normans  invaded  Ireland.     Remember,  the  first  invaders 


3o8  The  Future  of  the  Irish  Race. 

were  not  the  Saxons,  but  the  Normans  who  had  conquered  the 
Saxons.  De  Lacey,  De  Courcy,  Fitzurse — they  were  the  first 
men  who  planted  the  standard  of  England  in  Ireland,  and  they 
were  Anglo-Norman  knights.  They  were  the  strongest  men  in 
the  world,  these  Normans — mail-clad  warriors,  mounted  on 
horses  also  clad  in  mail,  they  moved  against  their  enemies  like 
castles  of  steel.  There  was  no  power  in  Europe  able  to  with- 
stand them  or  able  to  hold  the  day  against  their  lances.  Splendid 
men  ;  the  first  in  the  ranks  of  civilization,  of  culture,  of  warlike 
qualities,  of  energy — of  everything  that  makes  the  man.  Above 
all,  they  were  the  proudest  race  in  Europe.  They  not  only 
conquered  their  enemies,  but  when  they  had  conquered  they 
despised  them.  They  conquered  the  Saxons  in  England  and 
despised  them.  For  many  a  year  a  Norman  knight  or  soldier 
would  not  think  of  marrying  a  Saxon  woman.  They  would  not 
learn  the  Saxon  language.  The  language  of  the  Court  was  not 
English,  it  was  French.  Richard  Coeur  de  Lion  was  a  Norman 
King  of  England,  and  he  could  not  speak  three  words  of  the 
language  of  the  country.  These  proud,  splendid  Normans 
came  to  Ireland,  and  many  a  hard  blow  was  given  and  taken. 
Many  a  terrible  field  of  blood  there  was  before  the  invader 
held  sway ;  but  in  the  end  the  Norman  put  his  mailed  heel  on 
the  neck  of  the  nation.  But  mark  the  difference.  No  sooner 
did  they  go  amongst  the  Irish  to  live  in  peace  than  they  took 
Irishwomen  for  their  wives — and  glad  to  get  them.  The  next 
thing  they  did  was  to  change  their  Norman  names  and  take 
Irish  names ;  the  next,  to  forget  their  French  and  learn  to  talk 
Irish.  So  that  thirty  years  after  their  first  landing  a  complaint 
was  sent  over  to  England  that  they  were  "more  Irish  than  the 
Irish  themselves."  The  De  Burgo  went  down  into  Connaught 
and  took  an  Irish  title,  Earl  of  Clanricarde.  The  Fitzurse,  the 
terrible  Norman  noble,  went  up  into  Fermanagh  and  changed 
his  name  to  an  Irish  one — MacMahon.  And  after  that,  when 
each  successive  army  landed  to  seize  upon  the  whole  island,  the 
Irish  fought  them  foot  by  foot,  and  the  hardest  blows  were  struck 
by  Norman  hands.  Now,  remember,  this  is  a  strange  phe- 
nomenon. 

A  race  so  powerful,  so  proud,  so  magnificent,  so  marked  with 
force  of  character — they  no  sooner  meet  the  Celt  than  they 
change  and  are  absorbed.     Even  to  this  day  an  Englishman  has 


at  Home  and  Abroad.  309 

only  to  go  to  Ireland,  even  to  a  part  of  the  country  that  may 
not  be  so  beautiful,  so  rich,  as  his  own,  and  he  soon  learns  to 
love  the  people.  Mr.  Froude,  who  has  lived  in  Ireland  for  some 
time,  says  :  "  I  cannot  help  loving  Ireland  and  her  people." 
This  is  a  great  historical  fact,  my  friends ;  and  it  comes  from 
this — that  Almighty  God  has  given  to  the  Celtic  Irishman  a 
strong,  vigorous,  powerful  cast  of  character. 

And,  you  will  ask  me,  is  this  a  blessing  or  a  curse  ?  Ah  !  it 
may  be  one,  and  it  may  be  the  other.  How  many  persons 
there  are  who  would  come  through  the  world  better  and  more 
happily  if  they  had  less  force  of  character  !  They  are  ready  to 
knock  their  heads  against  every  man  and  every  faction,  so  that 
it  becomes  a  source  of  misery  instead  of  blessing.  It  leads 
them  into  contentions  and  dangers  which  they  might  have 
avoided ;  for  in  wisely  avoiding  unnecessary  strife  and  conten- 
tion consists  all  true  manliness.  To  Ireland  it  has  been  both  a 
blessing  and  a  curse.  It  has  been  a  blessing,  inasmuch  as  it  has 
preserved  us  intact  and  entire  as  a  nation,  in  circumstances  under 
which  any  other  race  would  have  long  since  ceased  to  exist  as 
a  distinct  nationality.  There  is  no  race  of  which  history  speaks 
in  its  records  that  has  suffered  so  much  as  the  Irish  race ;  there 
is  no  race  so  ancient  that  has  preserved  so  much  vigorous 
strength  of  national  character.  This  is  how  God's  blessing 
clings  to  the  Irish.  Because  of  this  strength  of  character  we 
never  knew  when  we  were  defeated  ;  we  never  knew  when  we 
were  to  sit  down  contented  to  be  a  prosperous  province  of  a 
great  kingdom,  instead  of  a  ruined,  heart-broken  nation. 

Scotland,  whose  record  is  so  grand  in  history ;  Scotland,  so 
replete  in  every  ennobling  memory  of  the  past ;  Scotland,  that 
may  well  be  proud  of  the  bravery  and  intelligence  of  her  sons, 
has  yet  surrendered  all  her  individuality,  and  now  is  a  pros- 
perous province  without  a  name. 

There  was  a  time  when  the  King  of  England  called  himself 
"  King  of  England  and  Scotland  ;  "  but  now,  now  the  title  of 
Victoria  is  "Queen  of  Great  Britain — a7id  Ireland!"  Out  of 
that  vigor  and  force  of  national  character,  Ireland  has  preferred 
to  be  a  heart-broken  and  miserable  country,  but  still  to  have 
her  name  before  the  world,  written  in  letters  of  gold,  and  to  have 
that  name  written  as  the  name  of  a  nation. 

The  next  grand  characteristic  of  the  Irish  race,  as  revealed  in 


3IO  The  Future  of  the  Irish  Race 

its  history,  is  a  characteristic  that  is  not  a  curse,  but  a  blessing, 
no  longer  merely  human  but  altogether  divine ;  namely,  its 
Catholic  faith — its  adherence  to  that  religion  that  came  from 
God.  From  God  direct  came  strength,  so  that,  in  good  or  evil, 
in  joy  or  in  sorrow,  no  power  on  earth  or  in  hell  has  ever  been 
able  to  drag  the  Catholic  faith  out  of  the  heart  of  Ireland. 

Ireland's  Catholicity  is  a  strong  and  singular  fact,  whether  we 
consider  the  manner  in  which  it  was  received,  or  in  which  it  was 
held.  Ireland's  Catholicity  marks  our  race  with  as  distinctive 
a  mark  among  the  nations  as  the  Immaculate  Conception  marked 
the  Mother  of  God  among  women.  No  nation  received  the 
faith  with  so  much  joy,  or  held  it  with  such  fidelity.  Christ 
our  Lord  not  only  founded  a  religion,  but  also  a  Church.  It  is 
the  fashion  now-a-days  to  distinguish  between  religion  and  the 
Church ;  and  we  are  told  by  some  that  the  Church  has  always 
been  the  enemy  of  religion.  Now,  reflect  for  an  instant,  What 
is  the  Church?  The  Church  is  simply  a  body  of  men,  organized 
by  our  Lord  to  teach  His  laws  and  administer  His  sacraments. 
If  Christ  had  left  His  law  and  sacraments  without  a  Church 
to  teach  and  administer  them  forever,  His  work  would  have 
been  unworthy  the  wisdom  of  God.  Did  you  ever  hear  of  a 
nation  established  and  its  laws  drawn  up,  and  left  without  a 
government  ?  Such  a  thing  is  impossible.  When  George  Wash- 
ington— immortal  and  imperishable  name — when  he  gave  to 
America  the  magnificent  republican  Constitution  which  is  the 
palladium  of  this  great  country's  freedom,  did  he  not  himself 
consent  to  be  the  first  President?  Did  he  not  elaborate  all  the 
machinery  of  government,  instituting  the  various  public  offices, 
and  perpetuating  the  whole  by  the  establishment  of  a  Congress 
and  Senate?  What  would  the  laws  and  the  Constitution  be 
without  this  government?  And  what  would  the  law  of  Jesus 
Christ  be  if  the  Lord  who  founded  it  had  not  also  established  a 
government  to  take  charge  of,  and  publish  His  law?  That  is 
the  Catholic  Church,  and  it  is  nothing  more.  From  the  day 
that  she  received  her  commission,  "  Go  and  teach  all  nations," 
from  that  hour  she  has  never  been  silent.  Her  voice  has  re- 
sounded in  every  clime  and  every  language,  proclaiming  to  the 
sinful  man  that  he  must  be  pure ;  to  the  impious  man  that  he 
must  be  amiable ;  to  the  envious  man  that  he  must  be  charita- 
ble ;  to  the  man  who  is  weak  as  clay  that  he  must  make  him- 


at  Home  and  Abroad.  31 1 

self,  by  self-denial,  strong  as  the  adamantine  rock.  The  mes- 
sengers of  Jesus  Christ  came  to  the  nations,  and  history  tells 
us  that  the  very  first  thing  the  nations  did  was  to  put  the  mes- 
sengers to  death.  All  the  apostles  were  martyrs.  This  hour 
the  Jesuit  missionaries,  awaiting  their  doom  in  China  and  Japan, 
are  living  witnesses  of  how  the  nations  received  the  messengers 
of  our  Lord. 

Just  one  nation  there  is,  and  one  only,  to  whom  a  man  came 
to  preach  the  Gospel,  which  received  it  in  all  its  purity  and  re- 
ceived it  in  peace.  Patrick  came  to  the  Irish  people,  and  he 
stood  fearlessly  before  the  chiefs  and  kings  of  the  land  ;  he  came 
to  deliver  the  message  of  the  Lord,  and  he  flung  the  banner  of 
Christ  to  the  winds  of  Ireland,  speaking  in  the  Irish  language 
to  king,  bard,  and  minstrel;  and  as  soon  as  they  saw  the  force 
of  his  argument,  behold,  the  king,  the  baron,  the  minstrel,  the 
bard,  and  the  people,  all  with  one  voice  proclaimed  their  accept- 
ance of  the  faith.  Ireland  embraced  the  religion  then,  and  she 
will  hold  it  to  her  heart  forever  and  ever.  And  Ireland's  con- 
version never  cost  its  apostle  one  tear  or  one  drop  of  blood. 
Patrick  found  the  entire  island  pagan,  and  before  he  died  Ire- 
land was  as  Catholic  as  she  is  to-day.  He  found  a  nation  which, 
as  soon  as  it  embraced  Catholicity,  sprang,  as  it  were,  without  a 
summer,  into  the  full  fruitage  of  autumn  ;  the  Irish  people 
sprang  at  once  from  paganism  into  the  possession  of  a  national 
priesthood  and  episcopacy.  When  other  nations  were  convert- 
ed to  the  faith  it  was  long  before  that  faith  became  so  mingled 
with  their  blood  as  to  produce  a  national  priesthood.  When 
St.  Augustine,  who  was  the  first  Archbishop  of  Canterbury, 
died,  they  had  to  send  to  Rome  for  a  successor,  and  so  the  first 
seven  Archbishops  of  Canterbury  were  foreigners.  It  is  a  pecu- 
liar fact  that  no  sooner  were  the  Irish  converted  than  they 
became  a  nation  of  priests. 

But  you  will  say  that  which  was  so  easily  acquired  may  be  as 
easily  lost.  There  is  the  magnificent  fact :  No  nation  has  ever 
been  tried  since  the  world  was  created  as  Ireland  has  been  tried. 
The  strongest  people  on  the  earth  made  up  their  minds  that 
Ireland  was  to  be  Protestant.  Ireland  suffered  as  no  nation 
was  called  on  to  suffer  since  God  made  the  world  ;  but  she  came 
forth  from  the  fire  with  all  her  religious  faith  unscathed.  Was 
this  a  blessing  or  a  curse?     A  blessing  and  no  curse.     IrioJ'md 


312  The  Future  of  the  Irtsh  Race 

is  the  only  nation  whose  religion  is  national.  The  nationality 
and  faith  are  so  united  that  the  moment  you  take  one  away  the 
other  perishes.  Strictly  speaking,  the  contest  for  nationality 
never  began  until  the  religious  element  was  infused  into  the 
quarrel  between  England  and  Ireland.  For  four  hundred  years 
the  English  were  reigning  in  Ireland  ;  but  they  never  dreamt 
of  destroying  her  nationality.  They  did  not  claim  the  title  of 
King  of  Ireland.  The  first  king  who  took  it  was  Henry  VIII. , 
the  man  who  assailed  Catholicity.  The  moment  Ireland  refused 
to  take  the  religion  that  was  held  out  to  her,  England  said, 
"We  will  crush  Ireland  down  to  the  dust,  and  make  her  a- 
province,"  The  fight  began  then,  and  from  the  first,  religion 
was  mixed  up  in  it ;  and  it  went  on  until  it  was  deeply  engraved 
on  the  heart  of  every  Celtic  man,  that  religion  and  nationality 
were  a  unit.  Had  we  renounced  our  religion  at  the  dictate  of 
either  Henry  or  Elizabeth,  would  we  be  to-day  the  distinctive 
race  we  are  ?  No  !  so  long  as  we  were  Catholic  we  took  them 
into  our  bosom  ;  they  became  more  Irish  than  ourselves  when 
they  came  to  live  with  us.  The  fact  is  that  the  Englishmen  and 
Irishmen  were  so  well  inclined  to  join  hands  that  the  govern- 
ment took  measures  for  disuniting  them.  With  this  view  the 
district  of  the  Pale  was  formed,  which  comprised  the  counties 
of  Dublin,  Kildare,  Meath,  and  Uriel,  with  the  seaport  cities 
of  Waterford,  Cork,  and  Limerick;  and  this  was  done  as  much 
with  the  view  of  keeping  the  English  in,  as  of  keeping  the  Irish 
out.  During  these  years  the  two  races  sprang  to  each  other, 
joined  by  the  bond  of  a  common  religion.  In  a  ^^\n  years  after 
an  Englishman  came  to  live  in  Ireland  he  ceased  to  be  an  Eng- 
lishman and  became  a  Celt.  But  mark  the  difference  from  the 
day  that  England  became  Protestant.  Two  great  movements 
of  the  population  took  place  in  Ireland  since  then.  Under 
James  I.  the  whole  province  of  Ulster  was  taken  from  the  Irish 
inhabitants  and  given  to  Scotch  and  English  settlers.  They 
have  remained  on  the  land  ever  since. 

Have  the  Irish  mingled  with  them  ?  No !  They  stand 
aloof;  they  have  no  love,  they  have  no  feelings  in  common. 
The  great  wall  of  religious  difference  divides  them.  Mr.  Froude 
says  that  this  is  a  source  of  weakness  to  Ireland.  He  says  she  is 
not  a  nation  to-day,  that  she  has  no  national  unity,  because 
there  is  a  Protestant  and  a  Catholic  Ireland.     Yes,  my  friends, 


at  Home  and  Abroad.  313 

if  ever  we  are  to  be  a  nation  strong  and  united,  we  must  go  up 
to  Ulster,  not  with  bludgeons,  but  with  words  of  love  and 
peace,  and  try  to  convert  the  Orangemen.  The  second  great 
emigration  since  the  days  of  the  so-called  Reformation,  was 
under  Cromwell.  He  came  to  Ireland,  and  what  James  I.  did 
in  Ulster,  Cromwell  did  in  Munster  and  Leinster.  He  made 
up  his  mind  how  to  deal  with  the  Irish,  and  he  sent  them  "  to 
hell  or  to  Connaught."  He  told  them  to  take  their  choice.  The 
Irish  people  thought  it  over — hell  or  Connaught — and  they  were 
sensible  enough  to  decline  going  to  hell.  Perhaps  they  thought 
it  would  be  rather  crowded,  and  in  their  charity  they  made  up 
their  minds  to  leave  a  little  elbow-room  for  Oliver  himself. 
Well,  on  a  certain  day,  the  15th  of  May,  all  Ireland  was  to  be 
driven  across  the  Shannon  like  a  flock  of  sheep.  The  whole 
people  were  driven  into  the  most  inhospitable,  mountainous, 
barren  province  of  the  island — my  own  Connaught — and  there 
they  were  left  to  live  and  die  in  misery.  Then  came  the  Crom- 
wellian  settlement,  by  which  all  the  best  land  in  the  country 
passed  into  the  hands  of  Cromwellian  settlers,  and  the  lands 
are  in  their  hands  to  this  day.  The  Irish  landlords,  to  a  large 
extent,  are  still  Cromwellian.  All  the  broad  plains  of  Munster, 
the  fields  of  Tipperary,  are  in  the  hands  of  Cromwellian  land- 
lords. 

Have  they  intermixed !  No  !  The  Celt  stands  aloof  from 
the  Cromwellian.  And  yet,  I  say,  as  long  as  the  invading  race 
was  Catholic,  when  they  came  to  Ireland  they  were  willing  to 
remain  as  brothers  and  friends. 

Any  man  who  looks  at  the  pages  of  Irish  history  with  a  phil- 
osophic mind  will  find  that  this  strength  of  character  has  been 
the  source  of  whatever  glory  and  greatness  hang  about  the  Irish 
race  at  home  and  abroad.  Turn  to  the  other  side :  How  came 
it  to  pass  that  a  people  so  endowed  with  such  strength  of  char- 
acter as  to  be  able  to  absorb  even  the  haughty  Norman,  and 
with  such  a  divine  principle  of  unity  as  a  common  faith  and  re- 
ligion, have  been  so  utterly  divided  and  shattered  as  they  have 
been  ?  Oh  !  my  friends,  where  is  the  land  that  has  not  heard 
the  lament  of  the  Irish  exile  ?  Where  is  the  spot  of  earth  on 
which  his  tears  have  not  fallen  ?  Even  Mr.  Froude  says  of 
Ireland,  that  were  she  united  as  a  nation  she  would  be  in- 
vincible ;  all  the  powers  of  earth  could  not  wrest  from  her,  her 


314  The  Future  of  the  Irish  Race 

independence.  I  will  not  grieve  my  own  heart  and  yours  by 
dwelling  on  the  dissension  and  internal  quarrels  of  chieftain 
with  chieftain,  even  when  the  Norman  invader  was  at  the  door. 
This  English  historian  acknowledges  that  disunion  was  the  ruin 
of  the  past,  as  it  is  the  weakness  of  the  present ;  and,  if  not  de- 
stroyed, will  be  the  blight  of  the  future. 

The  second  great  curse  and  cause  of  weakness  is  carelessness, 
prodigality,  showing  itself  in  too  great  a  love  of  drink. 
There  are  some  men  who  get  drunk  for  the  pleasure  it  gives 
them  ;  some  drink  because  they  are  thirsty.  The  Irishman 
does  neither.  He  does  not  drink  for  himself,  but  for  others. 
Light-hearted,  fond  of  pleasant  company,  not  encumbered  with 
much  money,  he  meets  with  some  friends,  and  the  first  thing  he 
wants  to  do  is  to  do  something  for  them,  and  what  can  he  do  but 
treat  them.  Good-nature  and  fellow-feeling  is  the  cause  of  the 
drunkenness  of  Irishmen,  so  far  as  it  exists. 

I  need  not  speak  to  you  on  the  abstract  question  of  intem- 
perance— it  would  be  an  insult  to  Boston,  where,  I  believe,  a 
man  cannot  even  get  a  pint  of  beer  for  sale.  To  talk  of  tem- 
perance in  Boston  would  be  something  like  a  lecture  on  the  nature 
of  coal  in  Newcastle.  I  honor  Boston  for  her  law.  When  we 
look  into  the  history  of  our  race  we  find  that  this  curse  has  cost 
Ireland  the  loss  of  the  best  of  her  sons.  Mr.  Froude  says  that 
when  England  was  ravaging  the  country,  the  Irish  chieftains 
were  fighting,  eating,  and  drinking  among  themselves.  Ireland 
lost  her  greatest  hero  through  this  curse — Owen  Roe  O'Neill. 
He  was  the  greatest  of  her  sons.  He  was  General  Commander- 
in-Chief  of  the  armies  of  Spain  at  a  time  when  Spain  was  the 
first  military  power  in  the  world  ;  he  was  a  princely-hearted  man, 
and  one  of  the  most  cultured  men  and  best  scholars  in  Europe. 
He  was  coming  down  from  the  north  of  Ireland  to  measure  swords 
with  Oliver  Cromwell,  and  he  was  the  only  man  in  the  world 
who  was  a  match  for  Cromwell.  On  his  march  with  his 
forces,  he  gave  an  entertainment  to  his  followers  and  friends  ; 
and  while  he  was  drinking  his  wine,  the  emissary  of  the  enemy 
dropped  poison  into  the  cup — and  Ireland  lost,  that  day,  the 
best  son  that  God  ever  gave  her. 

Look  at  the  last  struggle  for  Irish  independence.  The  men 
of  Wexford  and  Wicklow  stood  on  Vinegar  Hill  prepared  to 
fight  as  they  had  fought  at  New  Ross.     The  English  army  encir- 


at  Home  and  Abroad.  315 

cled  the  hill,  and  the  sentries  stood  around  its  base.  And  at  night 
the  English  sentries  heard  the  sound  of  wild  carousing  and  up- 
roar. The  Irishmen  were  drinking.  The  next  day,  when  they 
should  have  stood  clear-headed  and  wary,  found  them  unable  to 
handle  the  pike,  sick  in  body  and  demoralized  in  mind. 

What  is  the  future  of  this  race?  I  answer,  the  future  of  a 
nation  or  a  race,  like  the  predestination  of  a  man,  is  in  its  own 
hands.  If  you  ask  me  what  is  your  future  to  be,  I  answer,  my 
friends,  that  your  future  life  is  in  God  who  has  given  you  that 
future  ;  if  you  elaborate  it  with  care  and  prudence,  you  can  make  it 
happy  here  and  happy  for  eternity ;  but  if  you  refuse  or  neglect 
to  do  this,  you  will  be  unhappy  here  and  hereafter.  So  it  is 
with  nations. 

The  duty  of  Irishmen  to-day,  the  lesson  which  they  should 
learn  from  the  history  of  their  race,  is  to  preserve  that  which 
was  great  in  the  national  character,  and  give  up  that  which  was 
the  source  of  ruin  and  weakness.  First  of  all  it  is  necessary  to 
preserve  our  national  character.  There  is  very  little  in  the  Irish 
national  character  that  we  should  be  ashamed  of.  We  have 
never  gone  out  to  conquer  any  people,  we  have  never  robbed 
and  plundered  another  country.  Ireland's  escutcheon,  battered 
by  centuries  of  struggle,  shows  no  bar  sinister  that  makes  the 
Irishman  blush  to-day.  But  that  name,  that  Mac  or  O,  that  has 
come  down  to  us,  that  strong  character,  that  love  for  the  land 
that  belongs  to  the  Irish  race — if  you  wish  to  carve  out  a  grand 
future  you  must  preserve  all  that. 

Sometimes  it  happens  that  a  man  comes  here  and  gives  up  a 
grand  old  name,  like  O'Brien  or  O'Neill,  or  some  other  that  was 
perhaps  proudly  borne  by  a  chieftain  or  a  belted  earl.  Some- 
times a  man  comes  here  and  changes  his  Irish  name,  to  call  him- 
self some  abominable  patronymic  like  Muggins  or  Jenks.  I 
met  since  I  came  here  a  man  who  had  a  splendid  Irish  name, 
that  was  borne  once  by  a  prince  of  the  western  part  of  Ireland, 
and  I  asked  him  how  he  was  and  how  he  got  on,  and  said  I, 
**  Are  there  many  men  of  your  name  here  ?  "  "  Oh,"  said  he, 
"  I  gave  up  my  Irish  name,  and  I  thought  I  might  as  well  get 
as  English  a  name  as  I  could  :  now  they  call  me  Jenks." 

Far  away  from  the  land  where  our  race  was  individualized, 
with  a  thousand  influences  around  us  to  weaken  the  recollec- 
tions of  home,  here  a  man  may  be  tempted  to  forget  that  he  is 


3i6  The  Future  of  the  Irish  Race 

an  Irishman,  or  the  son  of  an  Irishman.  Why  should  he  forget 
it  ?  Is  it  not  an  ancient  race,  an  honorable  race,  as  brave  a  race 
as  any  in  the  world  ?  Is  it  not  above  all  other  races  the  one 
that  has  known  how  always  to  preserve  faith  with  God  and  man? 
Ireland's  future,  as  a  race,  will  perish  when  her  children  and 
grandchildren  born  in  America  repudiate  their  ancestry.  There 
is  an  end  then.  You  amalgamate  at  once  with  the  nations 
around  you.  You  give  the  lie  then  to  that  history  that  tells 
how  the  strange  races  were  always  absorbed  when  they  touched 
the  Celt. 

Secondly,  you  must  preserve  your  old  unflinching  faith  in  the 
Catholic  Church.  It  is  as  necessary  for  salvation  now  as  it  was 
in  Ireland  long  ago.  It  is  as  much  the  source  of  all  sacramental 
power,  the  secret  of  all  God's  favor,  to  us  now,  as  it  was  to  our 
fathers,  when  they  laid  down  their  lives  rather  than  change  or  re- 
nounce it.  It  has  been  the  strongest  possible  bond  to  make  a  unit 
of  the  race.  The  strongest  bond  of  unity  is  religious  faith.  If  that 
is  lost  through  drinking  in  the  strong  miasmata  arising  from 
strange  clouds  floating  around,  if  in  that  respect  you  degenerate, 
there  is  an  end  of  the  autonomy  of  our  race  here.  If  that  is 
lost  you  have  no  grand  future  before  you.  The  grand  future 
may  be  before  America,  it  may  be  before  the  men  who  shall  be 
called  in  to  take  your  places  in  the  kingdom  of  God;  but  it 
will  not  be  yours  unless  you  clutch  that  faith  with  all  the  firm- 
ness with  which  your  fathers  laid  hold  of  it  in  the  days  gone  by  ! 
Oh  !  how  grand  was  their  valor  in  defense  of  their  faith  !  How 
magnificent  was  the  attitude  and  firmness  of  Hugh  O'Neill, 
the  only  man  who  ever  struck  terror  into  the  proud  heart  of 
Elizabeth.  She  sent  over  an  offer  to  make  him  Earl  of  Ty- 
rone, if  he  would  only  renounce  the  Catholic  faith.  The  mes- 
senger came,  and  met  Hugh,  who  heard  his  offer,  and  then 
said  proudly,  "  I  am  a  Catholic.  A  Catholic  I  have  lived,  and  a 
Catholic  I  will  die." 

This  danger  of  losing  our  faith  is  far  more  likely  to  come  to  pass 
than  the  danger  of  losing  our  Irish  character.  That  lives  in  our 
very  nature.  We  have  strong  impassioned  feelings  of  indigna- 
tion, pleasure,  love,  and  hatred,  and  these  we  cannot  easily  lose. 
But  our  religion  comes  from  God  ;  the  faith  comes  from  heaven, 
and  it  is  taken  away  from  a  man  when  he  makes  himself  un- 
worthy.    So  sure  as  the  practices  of  the  Catholic  Church  are 


at  Home  and  Abroad.  317 

neglected  by  a  man  here,  he  will  bring  up  in  the  light  of  that 
example,  children  who  will  deny  the  very  profession  of  his  faith 
and  his  name ;  and  in  this,  too,  I  hold  that  the  mystery  of  Ire- 
land's future  is  involved. 

The  next  thing  is  the  disunion  of  Irishmen.  It  was  the 
source  of  misery  in  the  past,  and,  if  allowed  to  grow  untouched, 
it  will  be  the  blight  of  the  future.  Why  should  we  be  disunited  ? 
Let  every  man  hold  the  Catholic  religion  as  he  holds  his  soul ; 
but  let  him  be  liberal  and  kind-hearted,  and  allow  to  all  men  a 
perfect  right  to  their  own  religious  opinions.  At  this  moment, 
if  I  am  informed  rightly,  there  are  other  nations  that  are  more 
united  here  than  the  Irish.  The  Germans  vote  together,  while 
the  Irish  vote  is  divided.  If  two  Catholics  and  two  Orangemen 
come  together  they  must  celebrate  the  meeting  with  a  fight. 
Oh  !  my  friends,  we  have  fought  long  enough.  It  is  not  by 
breaking  a  man's  head  that  you  can  make  a  Catholic  of  him  ; 
nor  can  he  change  us  to  his  way  of  thinking  by  insult.  Let 
there  be  toleration  ;  and,  above  all  things,  overruling  all  forms 
of  religious  belief,  let  there  be  feelings  of  charity  and  forbear- 
ance for  our  fellow-men.  There  are  a  thousand  questions  of 
primary  importance  outside  the  religious  question.  Is  it  neces- 
sary for  a  man  to  hate  Ireland  because  he  is  a  Protestant  ?  The 
very  Orangemen  shed  their  blood  for  Ireland's  independence. 
The  men  of  '98  were,  the  best  of  them,  Protestants  from  the 
north  of  Ireland.  Why,  in  God's  name,  should  we  tear  our- 
selves to  pieces,  and  destroy  our  power  for  good  by  fighting 
with  our  fellow-men  on  questions  upon  which  we  can  unite 
without  sacrificing  a  particle  of  our  religious  belief? 

Again,  it  is  necessary  for  every  honorable  Irishman  to  set  his 
foot  on  the  vice  of  intemperance  ;  to  stamp  out  that  pestilen- 
tial evil,  the  sin,  meanness,  and  degradation  of  drunkenness. 
America  is,  in  many  respects,  a  singular  country ;  in  most 
respects  the  greatest  country  in  the  world.  In  other  lands,  my 
friends — and  I  speak  now  especially  to  those  of  my  hearers  who 
were  born  in  America — in  other  lands  a  man  may  be  born  to 
wealth  and  title,  and  plenty  of  money,  and  consequently  to  a 
high  station  and  much  power;  yet  he  may  be  a  born  ape,  a 
booby.  How  many  a  titled  "  swell "  there  is,  who  is  not  fit  to 
say  a  word.  I  have  often  gone  into  the  House  of  Lords,  and  I 
found  them  there  making  a  '*  holy  show  "  of  themselves,  "  beg- 


3i8  The  Future  of  the  Irish  Race 

ging — a — to  inform — a — to  state — a  ;  "  and  looking  into  their 
hats  as  if  they  carried  their  brains  in  them.  More  ;  given  any 
amount  of  intelHgence,  of  energy,  of  ability,  there  is  a  power  in 
those  old  countries,  that  lies  in  the  path  of  every  man,  and  tells 
him  he  can  go  so  far,  but  no  farther,  for  when  he  reaches  a  cer- 
tain point  he  strikes  against  a  privileged  class.  But  here,  the 
way  of  honor,  the  broad  path  that  leads  up  to  the  highest  of 
your  public  offices,  is  open  to  all  men  ;  no  barrier  of  caste  or  of 
privilege  lies  in  the  way.  America  stands  on  her  great  shores, 
and  says  to  all  the  peoples  :  "  Come  !  there  is  room  for  you  all 
here  !  and  wealth  and  honor,  great  as  the  world  can  show,  for 
all  who  can  claim  the  glory  of  my  citizenship.  All  I  ask  for  is 
the  aristocracy  of  intellect,  industry,  genius,  energy,  and  sobriety. 
Come  to  me  with  these  ;  I  seek  no  other  endowment.  I  will 
not  ask  what  honors  your  fathers  bore.  I  only  want  the  present 
worth — 

'The  rank  is  but  the  guinea  stamp, 
The  man's  the  gold  for  a'  that.'  " 

And  in  this  race,  open  to  all,  may  I  ask,  if  this  be  the  require- 
ment, who  is  there  that  comes  to  America  with  so  fair  a  chance 
as  the  Irishman  ?  Is  he  deficient  in  brains?  Try  him  with  a 
joke ;  say  a  good  thing  to  him,  and  his  great,  ready  laugh  will 
tell  you  how  clear  is  his  intelligence.  Sydney  Smith  said  that 
the  only  way  to  get  a  joke  into  a  Scotchman's  head  was  to  get 
a  gimlet  and  bore  a  hole  and  put  it  in.  Have  we  brains  ?  Two 
things  only  did  England  leave  us ;  she  took  independence, 
nationality,  trade,  property.  Two  things  she  could  not  take — 
Irish  brains,  and  the  Catholic  faith.  In  the  darkest  "hour  of  Ire- 
land's history,  the  greatest  leader  of  opinion  in  England  was 
Edmund  Burke,  an  Irishman;  the  greatest  orator  that  was  ever 
neard  in  the  halls  of  the  British  Parliament,  to  whose  magnifi- 
cent sentences  Pitt  used  to  beat  time  as  if  to  music,  was  Henry 
Grattan.  Of  another,  John  Philpot  Curran,  Lord  Byron 
said :  "  I  have  heard  more  poetry  in  one  half-hour  listening 
to  Curran  speak,  than  I  ever  read  in  books."  The  greatest 
soldier  of  modern  times,  the  Duke  of  Wellington,  was  an 
Irishman,  although  he  was  ashamed  of  the  fact,  and  said  "  it  was 
his  misfortune,  and  not  his  fault."  Go  through  any  walk  of 
science,  art,  or  literature,  look  at  the  poets,  soldiers,  and  paint- 


at  Home  and  Abroad.  319 

ers,  and  you  will  find  that  the  choicest  laurels  of  England  have 
rested  on  the  brows  of  Irishmen. 

If,  then,  America  demand  as  the  first  condition,  the  posses- 
sion of  brains,  Ireland  can  furnish  her  with  a  large  contingent. 
Well,  the  next  great  requirement  that  she  demands  of  her  sons 
is  energy. 

Are  the  Irish  energetic?  Who  made  the  railroads  of  the 
world  ?  Who  built  the  great  cities?  Who  is  building  Chicago  to- 
day ?  I  could  go  through  the  rising  streets  of  Chicago  to-mor- 
row, and  from  the  tongues  of  the  workmen  tell  every  province 
of  Ireland.  They  might  be  speaking  the  English  language  ;  but 
it  would  be  like  the  young  lady  from  Westmeath  speaking 
French.  She  wrote  back  to  a  friend  that  Mullingar  French 
didn't  do  very  well  in  Paris. 

What  remains  to  insure  this  grand  future  for  the  Irish  race  ? 
All  these  gifts  of  intelligence,  industry,  energy — all  are  poisoned, 
spoiled,  ruined,  the  moment  the  devil  of  intemperance  is  allowed 
to  leave  its  hand  on  a  man.  Give  your  Irish  brains  fair  play. 
Be  temperate;  teach  your  children  to  keep  their  nature  firm 
and  free  from  that  curse  that  destroys  the  grace  of  God  in  heart 
and  brain. 

Oh !  how  grand  it  is,  as  I  see  it  to-day — this  future  of  my 
race!  Eight  millions  of  people  in  America  of  Irish  birth,  and 
eighteen  millions  of  Irish  blood !  In  thirty  years  there  must 
be  fifty  millions,  born  in  this  great  country,  spreading  it- 
self out  in  all  things,  rich  beyond  all  other  nations  in  minerals, 
rivers,  harbors.  Fifty  millions  of  Irishmen  here  will  overshade 
all  the  nations  of  the  earth.  Think  of  the  magnificent  element 
of  fifty  millions  of  Irishmen,  filling  the  public  offices,  and  guid- 
ing the  destinies  of  this  country,  and  all  bearing  the  distinctive 
marks  of  Irish  character,  an  ornament  and  a  pride  to  the  land 
that  adopted  them,  by  their  Catholic  temperance  and  purity. 

A  power  in  this  land  will  they  be  assuredly,  to  guide  and  in- 
fluence her  actions,  to  draw  the  sword  in  the  moment  of  dan- 
ger, and  to  strike  such  blows  in  the  cause  of  God  and  truth  as 
have  never  yet  rung  on  the  shield  of  injustice.  A  power  in  Ire- 
land before  which  the  generous  heart  of  America  will  be  sure  to 
bow  in  homage ;  a  power  that  will  not  prevent  you  from  being 
the  best  American  citizens,  while  you  will  not  lose  the  vision  of 
Ireland  and  of  the  debt  you  owe  her.     Then,  and  not  till  then, 


320    The  Future  of  the  Irish  Race  at  Home  and  Abroad. 

every  enemy  of  Ireland  will  stand  paralyzed  to  injure  her,  and 
unable  to  touch  her  with  hostile  hand  or  finger,  because  the 
great  phantom  of  Ireland  in  America  will  cause  them  to  recoil, 
and  force  them  to  respect  the  dear,  old,  venerated,  and  beloved 
island. 


WHAT  THE  POPES  DID  FOR  ROME. 


[Lecture  delivered  before  the  Catholic  Union,  Circle  of  New  York,  in  the  Cooper 
Institute,  on  the  evening  of  September  19,  1872.] 

Y  DEAR  FRIENDS  :    It  would  be  affectation  in  me 
to  pretend  to  be  ashamed  to  meet  you  this  evening.    I 
have  met  you  so  often  before,  and  have  so  often  received 
from  you  that  hearty  welcome  which  you  have  accorded 
me  just  now,  and  for  which,  as  an  Irishman  and  as  a  priest,  I 
am  more  grateful  than  I  can  express.     I  have  had  the  honor  to 
address  my  fellow-countrymen  on  many  important  topics  since  I 
came  to  this  country,  but  the  subject  upon  which  I  propose  to 
speak  to  you  this  evening  is  at  once  the  most  important,  and  tO' 
you  the  most  interesting,  upon  which  I  could  address  you.     It 
is  the  most   important,  because  bound   up  with  it  is  that  holy 
faith  by  which  we  hope  to  be  saved ;  and  it  is  also  the  most  in- 
teresting, for  it  takes  in  not  the  people  of  one  nation  or  of  one 
race,  but  the  whole  Christian  and  Catholic  world.     It  is,  more- 
over, the  most  interesting  to  you  not  only  as  Catholics,  but  also- 
to  a  great  majority  amongst  you  who  are  my  fellow-countrymen, 
to  whom  I  speak  on  a  subject  that  has  never  yet  failed  to  stir 
up  the  tenderest  and  strongest  emotion  of  every  Catholic  and 
every   Irish  heart :   namely,  the  glorious  subject  of  "  The  Pope 
of  Rome." 

And  now,  my  friends,  before  I  come  to  the  especial  object  of 
the  lecture  :  namely,  "  What  the  Popes  did  for  Rome,"  I  ask  yo*" 
to  consider  briefly  with  me  the  position  which  the  Holy  Father,, 
the  Head  of  the  Church,  holds  in  relation  to  the  mystic  body  of 
Jesus  Christ,  which  is  His  holy  Church.  When  Christ  our  Lord, 
the  Eternal  Word  of  God,  became  man.  He  came  to  give  to  this 
world  by  His  own  action  and  His  own  mercy  the  redemption  of 

21 


322  What  the  Popes  did  for  Rome. 

sin.  He  came  by  his  own  personal  act  to  wipe  away  and  wash 
away  the  sins  of  mankind,  and  to  shed  that  blood  without  which 
there  could  be  no  remission  :  namely,  the  blood  of  an  Infinite 
and  divine  victim  suffering  upon  the  cross.  He  came,  moreover, 
to  dispel  the  darkness  of  a  benighted  world,  over  which  hung 
the  thick  cloud  of  four  thousand  years  of  curse  and  of  sin, 
through  which  no  ray  of  divine  light  penetrated,  so  that  the  in- 
tellect of  mankind  was  darkened,  the  mind  obscured,  and  error 
in  its  most  hideous  form  was  not  only  propagated  amongst  men 
but  was  adored,  as  if  it  was  the  very  principle  gf  divinity  and  of 
light.  He  found  the  world  in  darkness,  and  He  said,  "I  am  the 
Light  of  the  world,"  and  forth  from  Him  streamed  the  divine 
light  of  heaven,  the  light  of  divine  knowledge  of  faith  which  dis- 
pelled the  darkness  that  overhung  the  intellect  of  man  and  let 
in  the  "  admirable  light,"  as  the  apostle  expresses  it,  of  Jesus 
Christ. 

He  came,  moreover,  to  leave  to  mankind  the  means  whereby 
they  were  to  sanctify  and  purify  themselves  unto  the  end  of 
time,  the  graces  flowing  from  the  sacraments,  without  which,  in 
the  ordinary  designs  of  God,  no  man  can  be  sanctified  or 
saved.  And  in  order  that  the  world  for  all  future  time 
should  possess  that  light,  pure,  clear,  brilliant,  even  as  it 
shone  forth  in  the  words  and  from  the  heart  of  the  Redeemer, 
and  in  order  that  the  world  might  have  unto  the  end  of  time, 
easy  access  to  the  sacraments,  the  sources  of  purification,  the 
fountains  which  were  brought  forth  at  the  touch  of  the  Lord 
unto  the  cleansing  of  the  sinner  and  the  unclean ;  in  order  to 
this,  Christ  our  Lord  established  His  Church.  He  founded 
her  in  sanctity  ;  He  founded  her  in  light  and  in  truth ;  He 
breathed  upon  her  the  breath  of  a  life  which  was  to  be  im- 
mortal and  imperishable,  and  He  set  her  up  upon  this  earth 
to  be  the  light  of  the  world,  and  to  be  the  salvation  of 
mankind.  Now,  the  first  thing  that  was  necessary  for  this 
Church  was,  that  all  men  should  know  her ;  that  her  claims 
should  be  palpable  and  clear  before  all  mankind ;  that  her 
voice  should  be  heard  in  every  land,  always  speaking  the  same 
word,  because  the  word  of  truth ;  always  dispensing  the  same 
graces,  because  the  necessities,  the  spiritual  wants  of  mankind 
were  the  same.  It  was  necessary  that  this  Church  should  be 
essentially  one,    never   changing   one   word   of  her    teaching, 


What  the  Popes  did  for  Rome.  323 

because  her  teaching  is  the  word  of  God,  and  the  word  of 
God,  eternal  truth,  can  never  change.  It  was  necessary  that 
she  should  be  one,  because  she  was  the  spouse  of  Jesus 
Christ,  His  representative  upon  this  earth,  carrying  on  His 
work  of  illumination  and  of  sanctity,  and,  therefore,  that  she 
should  be  His  image,  and  He  was  essentially  one. 

Let  us  pause  for  a  moment  upon  this  thought.  Unity  of 
doctrine,  unity  of  an  unchanged  and  an  unchanging  truth, 
unity  of  the  Word  that  never  was  to  contradict  itself,  unity  of 
obedience  whereby  all  mankind  was  to  be  bound  as  one,  not 
only  in  the  union  of  intellect  by  faith,  but  in  the  union  of  will 
by  obedience.  Unity  of  discipline  was  absolutely  necessary  for 
the  Church  that  was  founded  by  Jesus  Christ,  if  for  no  other 
reason,  that  she  might  represent  the  principle  of  unity  that  was 
in  Him.  For  mark,  I  need  not  tell  you  that  He  was  God,  the 
Second  Person  of  the  Adorable  Trinity,  true  God  of  true  God, 
the  Incarnate  Word  of  the  Eternal  Father  ;  but  I  need  not  tell 
you,  moreover,  that  He  was  also  the  same  identical  nature  with 
the  Father,  indivisible  in  essence  and  in  nature,  co-equal  in 
power  and  existence  from  all  eternity ;  and  that  God  is  essen- 
tially one,  and  that  the  Eternal  Word  was  essentially  one  from 
all  eternity  with  the  Father.  Then  He  came  on  earth,  and  He 
took  to  Him  our  nature.  We  might  imagine  that  now,  at 
least,  when  God  takes  to  Him  a  nature  which  is  foreign  to  Him- 
self, when  God  takes  to  Him  a  humanity  which  He  Himself 
created,  that  now,  at  least,  there  must  be  some  division  in  God, 
that  He  is  no  longer  to  remain  essentially  one.  But  no  ;  mark, 
in  the  mystery  of  the  Incarnation,  how  the  verj'  Word  of  God 
needs  a  preserving  principle  of  unity.  He  took  a  human  body 
and  a  human  soul  ;  He  took  a  human  will  and  a  human  heart  ; 
He  took  human  relations  and  human  affections  ;  He  became 
the  true  child  of  a  human  mother  ;  He  become  the  son  of  man  ; 
yet  taking  all  this.  He  carefully  put  away  from  Him  the  human 
individuality  or  personality,  and  He  assumed  the  humanity  into 
His  Godhead,  so  that  He  that  was  born  ot  the  Virgin,  although 
God  and  man,  was  God  and  man  so  united  as  to  make  but  one 
person,  and  that  person  was  divine,  and  the  mother  that  bore 
Him  was  the  Mother  of  God. 

Thus  was  the  principle  of  unity  still  preserved  in  the  manner 
in  which  that   Eternal  Word  took  human   nature  and  human 


324  W/iaf  the  Popes  did  for  Rome. 

flesh.  That  unity  by  which  He  was  one  with  the  Eternal 
Father,  that  ineffable  unity  of  nature,  that  unity  by  which  He 
was  one  with  manhood,  with  His  humanity  in  the  mysterious 
and  wonderful  union  of  person,  and  the  hypostatical  union  of 
incarnation,  that  unity  the  Son  of  God  expressly  declared  was 
to  be  represented  in  His  Church  to  the  end  of  time.  This  is 
the  point  which  the  men  of  our  day  lose  sight  of  outside  the 
Catholic  Church,  in  that  wild  waste  and  confusion  of  all  ideas, 
for  every  idea  of  religion  is  so  mingled  up  that  no  man  knows 
what  he  believes,  and  what  he  does  not  believe ;  that  no  man 
knows  in  what  he  agrees  or  in  what  he  differs  from  his  feHow- 
men.  The  principle  of  unity  is  entirely  lost  sight  of,  so  much 
so  that  actually  English  writers  of  our  day  are  boasting  of  the 
number  of  religions  that  are  formed  in  their  native  land.  A 
certain  noted  lecturer  of  great  fame  and  great  name,  some  time 
ago,  lecturing  before  a  very  learned  and  highly  respectable  as- 
semblage, gave  thanks  to  God — the  fool,  for  I  cannot  call  him 
anything  else — because  of  the  multiplicity  of  religions  ;  Shakers 
and  Quakers,  and  Baptists  and  Anabaptists,  Methodists  by 
primitive  communion.  New  Methodists,  Independent  Metho- 
dists, Methodists  without  any  dependence  on  God  or  man. 
Look  at  them,  says  he,  our  country  is  covered  with  churches. 
Oh,  isn't  it  a  glorious  thing  to  see  a  people  so  intent  upon  re- 
ligion? "Oh,"  said  the  Son  of  God,  the  night  before  He  died, 
when  the  thoughts  of  death  with  all  their  solemnity  were  upon 
his  mind ;  when  the  cross  and  all  its  accompanying  horrors 
were  clear  before  Him  in  the  mystery  of  the  coming  morning ; 
upon  that  night  of  Holy  Thursday,  He  put  up  His  last  prayer 
to  His  Father,  and  His  prayer  was  this  :  "  Oh,  Father,"  He 
said ;  "  you  and  I  are  one.  I  ask  you  that  even  as  we  are  one, 
so  those  whom  I  have  gathered  together  in  My  name  may  re- 
main one  ;  that  the  unity  with  which  I  am  bound  to  Thee  in 
nature  may  be  effected  in  them  by  the  grace  of  faith,  and  that 
they  may  be  one  ;  "  and  the  last  dying  words  of  the  Saviour  set 
upon  His  Church,  upon  her  brows,  as  the  sign  and  the  counter- 
sign by  which  all  men  were  to  know  her,  the  sign  of  "  unity ;"  she 
was  to  be  one,  admitting  no  rival,  admitting  no  contradiction, 
allowing  no  man  or  body  of  men  to  rise  up  and  say  to  her : 
"  You  lie."  She  cannot  lie,  because  she  tells  the  truth  ;  the  truth 
of  God  is  upon  her ;  it  is  in  her,  and  he  that  contradicts  her 
is  a  liar  against  God. 


W^af  the  Po^s  did  for  Rome.  325 

Now,  you  may  say  to  me :  "  This  is  all  very  fine ;  but  we 
come  here  this  evening  to  hear  something  about  the  Pope,  and 
you  are  talking  to  us  about  the  Church."  Well,  my  friends,  I 
am  just  coming  to  it.  Christ  our  Lord  set  the  seal  of  unity 
upon  His  Church ;  but  now  mark  how  He  acted  when  He 
was  founding  the  Church's  constitution.  A  learned  and  great 
man  of  our  age,  the  illustrious  Dr.  Newman,  has  said  that  there 
is  only  one  thing  in  this  world  finer  than  the  British  constitu- 
tion, and  that  is  the  constitution  of  the  Catholic  Church.  And 
well  might  he  make  the  distinction.  As  for  the  British  consti- 
tution, splendid  as  it  may  be,  we  Irish  only  know  it  in  the- 
ory, God  help  us!  If  it  is  the  fine  thing  they  say,  we  have 
never  known  it  in  practice — but  still,  such  as  it  is,  it  is  the 
work  of  man,  and  many  a  renegade,  and  many  a  bad,  traitorous, 
false-hearted  man  had  a  hand  in  the  making  of  it.  The  consti- 
tution of  the  Catholic  Church  is  the  work  of  our  Lord  and  Sa- 
viour Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of  God.     Therein  lies  the  difference. 

Now,  when  the  Son  of  God,  the  incarnate  wisdom  of  the 
Father,  was  blessing  the  constitution  of  His  Church,  the  very 
first  principle  that  he  laid  down,  as  we  have  seen,  was  unity, 
and  that  unity  was  to  be  represented  visibly  before  the  eyes  of 
men,  easily  recognizable  by  all  men.  What  did  He  do  in  order 
to  effect  this?  He  selected  twelve  apostles,  my  friends ;  but 
twelve  men  do  not  constitute  unity;  but  when  He  had  selected 
the  twelve  to  be  the  foundation-stone  of  His  Church,  He  then 
chose  one  out  of  the  twelve  and  picked  him  out,  and  to  that 
man  He  said :  "  To  thee,  O  Peter,  I  will  give  the  keys  of  the 
kingdom  of  heaven  ;  thou  must  feed  my  lambs,  thou  must  feed 
my  sheep.  I  have  prayed  for  thee,  that  thy  faith  fail  not. 
Arise,  O  Peter !  and  confirm  thy  brethren."  Mark  how  beau- 
tifully he  sketched  out  the  constitution  of  His  Church.  He 
preached  to  the  people,  and  converted  them  by  thousands ; 
then  out  of  the  ranks  of  the  people  He  selected  seventy-two 
disciples ;  then  out  of  the  ranks  of  the  seventy-two  He  culled 
and  selected  twelve  apostles,  and  out  of  the  twelve  He  took 
one,  and  He  put  that  one  before  them,  and  in  the  da)''  that  He  ^ 

ascended  into  heaven  He  left  that  one  man  standing  before  the 
whole  world,  the  representative  of  the  unity  of  the  Catholic 
Church.     That  man  was  Peter,  the  Pope  of  Rome. 

Now,  if  you  ask  me  why  did  our  Lord  do  this,  I  answer,  he 


\ 


326  What  the  Popes  did  for  Rome. 

did  it  to  preserve  the  faith.  He  did  it  for  other  reasons.  I  am 
speaking  in  the  presence  of  priests  and  theologians  ;  I  am  speak- 
ing in  the  presence  of  a  bishop,  learned  as  zealous  (Bishop  Quin- 
lan,  of  Mobile) ;  I  am  not  speaking  to  you  this  evening  without 
fear  and  trembling.  There  are  those  on  this  platform  who  could 
teach  me  ;  but  well  they  know,  and  we  know,  and  you  know, 
that  Christ  our  Lord  established  the  unity  of  His  Church  and 
the  unity  of  her  visible  head  for  many  reasons,  but  the  first  rea- 
son was  in  order  to  preserve  the  faith  ;  I  will  not  go  beyond  that ; 
I  appeal  to  histoiy  ;  the  Pope  of  Rome  represents  the  faith  of  the 
Catholic  Church  in  its  unity.  And  now  let  me  prove  this  at 
once  in  two  sentences  to  satisfy  you  all.  There  have  been  many 
separations  and  divisions  in  the  Church  since  the  day  that  Christ 
our  Lord  founded  it ;  many  heresies  have  sprung  up,  my  friends, 
many,  but  amongst  them  all  there  is  this  rule — the  moment  any 
man,  or  any  number  of  men,  or  any  nation  of  men,  separate 
from  the  Pope  of  Rome,  even  if  they  do  not  touch  one  single 
article  of  the  Catholic  faith  except  that,  they  are  lost,  and  lost 
forever. 

It  is  a  singular  fact  that  the  devil,  who  is  the  author  and  the 
father  of  all  heresies,  when  tempting  men  into  heresy,  has 
almost  invariably  only  asked  them  to  separate  themselves  from 
the  Pope;  not  to  deny — he  has  never  tempted  them  to  deny, 
any  article  of  Catholic  faith,  only  separate  from  the  Pope  ;  that 
is  enough  for  him.  In  twenty  years  we  find  them  lapsed  into 
every  form  of  error  and  heresy,  in  addition  to  this  first  false 
step.  Take  for  instance,  the  Greek  schism,  the  first  great 
division  of  the  Church — the  Archbishop  of  Constantinople  as- 
serted that  he  was  the  equal  of  the  Pope  of  Rome,  and  re- 
fused to  obey  him.  He  did  not  deny  a  single  article  of  the 
Catholic  faith,  not  one  single  truth  did  he  deny ;  all  he  said  was, 
"  I  am  equal  to  the  Pope  of  Rome  ;  I  am  as  good  as  he  is ;  he  is 
not  the  head  of  the  Church,  and  I  will  not  obey  him,"  nothing 
more.  How  stands  the  Greek  church  to-day  ?  Nations  followed 
him  in  his  disobedience,  as  the  rebel  angels  followed  Lucifer 
■when  he  cried  out  in  the  height  of  heaven :  "  I  will  not  be  sub- 
ject ;  I  will  not  obey."  Nations  followed  him  in  his  disobedience. 
How  are  these  nations  to-day  ?  They  are  fallen  into  heresy  ; 
they  deny  the  procession  of  the  Holy  Ghost  as  the  third  person 
in  the  Blessed  Trinity ;  they  are  fallen  into  spiritual  imbecility. 


W/iai  the  Popes  did  for  Rome.  2>-7 

The  Greek  schismatic  priesthood  and  episcopate  are  at  this  mo- 
ment a  living  reproach  to  the  name  of  Christianity.  How  came 
all  these  disorders  upon  them?  They  are  actually  bound  as 
slaves  to  the  Emperor  of  Russia,  and  a  slavery  to  the  State  has 
come  in  amongst  them  so  degrading,  that  to-morrow,  if  the  Em- 
peror of  Russia  got  up  with  a  headache,  and  took  it  into  his 
head  to  deny  any  article  of  the  Greek  Catholic  faith,  they  would 
all  be  obliged  to  follow  him,  and  believe  as  he  ordered.  Just 
the  same  as  if  the  Queen  of  England  and  her  privy  council  were 
to-morrow  to  decide  that  there  were  four  persons  in  the  Blessed 
Trinity  instead  of  three,  you  would  have  his  grace  of  Canterbury, 
the  Archbishop  of  York,  and  all  the  others  go  with  him  and  take 
off  their  mitre  and  bend  the  knee  and  say:  "Your  Majesty  says 
there  are  four  persons  in  the  Blessed  Trinity.  Yes  ;  we  believe 
it."  The  next  thing  they  would  be  obliged  to  do  would  be  to 
go  into  their  pulpits  and  preach  to  the  people :  "  Thus  saith 
the  Queen  ;  thus  saith  the  council  of  the  Queen  ;  there  are  four 
persons  in  God  instead  of  three."  That  is  the  position  to  which 
every  church  reduces  itself  which  separates  from  the  Pope  of 
Rome. 

Take  again  the  Church  of  England  as  she   is ;  look  at  her ; 
look   at    that    proud    Protestant  Church    that    reigns   in  Eng- 
land to-day,  that  reigned  in  Ireland  for  three  hundred  years, 
seated  upon   a  throne,  the  foundations  of  which  were  laid  in 
the  blood  of  the  martyrs  of  Ireland.     What  does  the  Church 
of  England  teach  to-day  ?     Does  she  teach  Baptism  ?    No.     She 
teaches  that  baptism   is  not  necessary  to  salvation.     Does  she 
teach  Confirmation  ?     No.     She  says  it  is  no  sacrament.     Does 
she  teach  the   Eucharist?     No.     She   denies   the  presence  of 
Jesus  Christ.     Does  she  teach   Penance?     No.     She  tells  the 
people  they  must   not  go  to  confession.     Does   she  teach  Ex- 
treme Unction?     No.     She  lets  her  people  die  like  dogs.     Does 
she  teach   Holy  Orders?     No.     She  lets  every  Spurgeon,  and 
every  Methodist,  and   every   Baptist,  and   every   tinker   in   the 
land  get  up  into  her  pulpits  and  preach  in  her  name.     Does  she 
teach   Matrimony?     No.     The  lawyer  who  pretends  to  preach 
the  words  of  the  council  has  admitted  upon  the  authority  of  the 
courts  and  the  English  Parliament  the  propriety  of  divorce.     I 
have  counted  up  the  seven  sacraments  that  we  all  know  since 
we  were  children,  and  not  one  of  them  remains  among  them, 


328  What  the  Popes  did  for  Rome. 

not  one.     Just  fancy  a  church  without  sacraments,  that  is  to  say, 
a  church  without  a  single  element  or  channel  of  divine  grace. 
Now  I  ask  you  to  consider  how  that  church  began.     See  where 
she  is  to-day.     What  was  she  three  hundred  years  ago?     All 
that  Henry  VIII.  demanded  of  England  was  to  deny  the  papal 
supremacy,  not  a  single  thing  more.     He  did  not  ask  them  to 
give    up    the    mass,    nor    to   give    up    confession,    nor   to    give 
up  baptism.      All   in  the  world  that    Henry  VIII.  said,  was, 
"  I    want    to    marry    five    or    six    wives ;  the    Pope    won't    let 
me.     But  I  am  as  good    as  the    Pope,   and  I    am   not  going 
to  be  subject  to  him  any  more,  it  is  much  more  convenient 
for  us  to  do  without  him.     Let  us  go  on.     Let  us  separate  from 
Rome,  but  we  will  keep  everything  else ;  we  will  keep  our  bish- 
ops and  our  priests,  and  have  mass  every  morning,  and  you  will 
all  go   to  confession,  and  all  be  married  in  the  church,  and  no 
man  shall  leave  his  wife  and  take  another  man's  wife,  except 
myself."     Henry  VIII.  died,  and  the  day  he  died,  England  had 
not  yet  renounced  one  single  article  of  Catholic  faith.     She  had 
only  separated   from  the  Pope  of  Rome,   but  that  separation 
alone  destroyed  in  her  the  power  of  faith,  the  existence  of  faith, 
the  unity  of  faith,  and  hence,  to-day,  not  a  single  vestige  of  di- 
vine grace  or  of  divine  faith  remains  with  her  Church. 

Thus  you   see   I   have  proved  by  these  two  examples,  and 
I  might  multiply  them,  that  all  in  the  world  the  devil  asks  any 
nation  to  do  is  to  separate  from  the  Pope  of  Rome,  because  he 
knows  well  that  in  twenty  or  thirty  years'  time  he  will  get  them 
to  deny,  if  necessary,  the  existence  of  God.     The  Pope  is  the 
guarantee  of  the  faith  of  the  Church,  because  he  is  the  repre- 
sentative of  her  unity,  and   the  faith   must   essentially  be  one. 
Our  Lord   ascended  into   heaven  ;  Peter  took  His  place  before 
men  as  the  viceroy  of  the   Son  of  God.     Christ   remained  the 
Invisible   Head   of  His   Church ;  remained  with  her  as  the  un- 
changeable Truth,  which  He  is  by  nature  and  by  essence  ;  re- 
mained  with  her  as   the   fountain   of  divine  grace,  which  was 
opened  from  the  five   bleeding  wounds  upon  the  cross  of  Cal- 
vary, and  which  has  never  ceased  to  flow  from  that   to  this  in 
the  channels  of  the  sacraments.    Christ  remained,  but  invisible ; 
Christ  remained,  but  hidden.     No  man  sees  him.     This  morn- 
ing, all  unworthy  as  I  am,  and  with  my  fellow-priests,  we  have 
all  touched  Him  with  our  hands,  spoken  to  Him  with  our  own 


What  the  Popes  did  for  Rome.  329 

lips,  received  Him  into  our  hearts;  but  no  eye  amongst  us  saw 
the  awful  God  that  lay  hidden  there — hidden  under  the  appear- 
ance of  the  morsel  of  bread  and  the  drop  of  wine.  Christ  re- 
mained, but  hidden  ;  but  it  was  necessary  that  His  Church 
should  see  Him,  and,  therefore.  He  set  up  Peter  to  represent 
Him,  and  said  :  "  Be  you  the  Head  of  the  Church,  the  founda- 
tion-stone upon  which  I  shall  build  My  Church,  with  confirming 
power  to  keep  thy  brethren  in  the  faith  unto  the  end  of  time." 
And  then  Peter  took  the  obligation  of  Christ. 

And  now,  my  friends,  just  as  Christ  our  Lord,  says  the 
apostle,  never  dies,  Christ,  rising  from  the  dead,  he  says,  dies 
no  more  ;  just  as  Christ  cannot  die,  who  is  eternally,  essentially 
alive,  so  Peter,  who  represents  Christ,  can  never  die — never ! 
Peter  may  go  up  to  the  Janiculum  of  Rome — Peter  in  his  old 
age  ;  his  hair,  white  as  the  untrodden  snow,  flowing  over  his  aged 
shoulders — may  lie  down  upon  the  cross,  and  have  the  nails 
driven  into  his  hands  and  feet,  and  be  treated  like  his  divine 
Master ;  Peter  may  be  lifted  up  upon  the  cross,  and  the  word 
may  go  forth  in  Rome  that  the  old  man  who  was  the  head  of 
the  Christians  is  dead,  but  Peter  did  not  die ;  he  arose  again 
and  lived  in  Linus,  and  Linus  was  carried  away  to  martyrdom, 
and  he  arose  and  lived  in  Anacletus,  and  Anacletus  shed  his 
blood,  and  arose  and  lived  in  Clement,  and  so  on,  Peter  dying 
in  one,  rising  in  the  other,  like  His  divine  Master,  until  at 
length,  Peter  died  in  Gregory  XVL,  and  came  to  life  again  in 
the  glorious  and  venerable  Pontiff  who  waves  his  hand  in  bless- 
ing to  America  to-night — Pius  IX. 

And,  dearly  beloved,  your  cheer  at  the  sound  of  that  ven- 
erated name  is  music  to  my  heart,  my  fellow-Catholics.  Would 
to  God  that  its  echoes  might  sweep  over  the  Atlantic  wave,  and 
resound  to-night  in  the  Vatican  of  Rome  !  Would  to  God  that 
those  around  him,  who  have  known  him  and  basked  in  the 
blessings  that  he  has  poured  out  upon  them — would  that  they 
had  your  hearts  to-night  of  love  and  bravery,  and  your  strong 
arms  to  draw  the  sword  and  rally  like  men  around  him  ! 

Time  rolled  on,  sweeping  away  upon  its  rapid  wings  the  rev- 
olutions of  ages,  and  broke  up  that  Roman  Empire  which 
spread  over  the  world,  which  was  cemented  in  the  blood  of 
nations  and  in  the  blood  of  the  martyrs  of  God,  and  which  man 
in  pride  declared  should  last  forever  and  be  eternal.     A  temple 


330  What  the  Popes  did  for  Rome. 

was  erected  in  Rome,  and  upon  its  portals  were  written  :  "  The 
Eternal  and  Everlasting  Temple."  They  thought  because  they 
had  conquered  the  nations  that  their  power  should  remain 
forever.  They  thought  because  they  had  dabbled  in  the  best 
blood  of  early  Christianity  for  three  hundred  years,  that  no 
power  on  earth  or  in  heaven  could  resist  them  ;  but  in  the 
fifth  century,  forth  from  the  storm-ridden  clouds  of  the  far 
north  of  Europe,  was  heard  the  ominous  sound  of  the  tramp 
of  the  coming  nations  ;  even  as  the  thunder-storm  gathers  upon 
the  horizon  and  approaches  until  it  covers  the  whole  face  of  the 
heavens,  and  the  black  cloud  is  seen  rising  up  through  the  sea, 
creeping  along  the  seashore,  enveloping  and  enfolding  the 
mountains  in  its  black  shade,  and  then  dashing  in  fury  over  the 
city,  whilst  the  terrible  thunder  comes  before  the  storm,  so  in 
the  hour  of  pomp,  and  power,  and  pride  of  Rome,  a  cloud  was 
seen  approaching  from  the  north  and  the  thunder  was  heard, 
but  it  was  the  tramp  of  the  nations  upon  the  march.  They 
had  risen  like  the  locusts;  they  had  risen  in  thousands,  tens  of 
thousands,  and  hundreds  of  thousands.  They  swept  along 
down  from  the  fastnesses  of  Northern  Asia  and  Europe  in  their 
resistless  course,  trampling  upon  the  nations,  ruining  kingdoms, 
breaking  down  provinces,  leaving  no  green  or  flourishing  thing 
of  life  behind  them  ;  and  so,  on  they  came,  enlarging  themselves, 
sweeping  away  everything,  devouring  everything  before  them, 
until  they  concentrated  their  forces  and  dashed  against  imperial 
Rome. 

Now,  we  come  to  the  question.  What  did  the  Popes  do  for 
Rome  ?  It  was  in  the  year  440,  the  provinces  of  Germany  were 
overrun  by  the  Huns  ;  they  were  a  nation  of  barbarous  savages, 
only  used  to  one  thing,  and  that  one  thing  the  exercise  of  their 
lives — war,  war,  terrible,  devouring  war.  On  they  came.  Every 
city  that  lay  in  their  path  was  destroyed  and  demolished,  until 
you  could  run  the  plow  over  the  place  where  once  all  the  glory 
and  splendor  of  civilization  had  lived.  Every  vestige  of  order, 
of  law,  of  power,  of  comfort,  of  life  disappeared  before  them. 
They  were  as  the  breath  from  the  lips  of  an  angry  God,  and  the 
nations  fled  before  them  down  to  Italy,  until  they  brought  the 
news  to  Rome  ;  "  Attila,  Attila  is  coming!  behind  him  five  hun- 
dred thousand  men,  before  him  the  wrath  of  the  Most  High, 
and  he  is  called  the  Scourge  of  God."     On  he  came,  no  power 


W/ial  the  Popes  did  for  Rome.  331 

to  resist  him ;  every  army  that  the  Roman  Empire  sent  against 
him  withered  and  destroyed  before  his  furious  presence.  His 
sword  swept  down  the  warriors  who  had  conquered  the  world, 
even  as  the  mower  reaps  with  his  scythe  the  blooming  grass  of 
the  meadow.  It  was  his  boast  that  nothing  ever  lived  in  his 
presence,  and  no  living  thing  remained  behind  where  he  had  once 
passed  over.  On  he  came  towards  Rome.  The  Roman  people  were 
affrighted,  terrified,  looked  to  this  side  and  to  that.  There  was 
no  help.  Their  city,  with  the  accumulated  riches  and  magnifi- 
cence of  eight  hundred  years,  a  thousand  years,  was  about  to 
fall  a  prey :  their  women  to  be  destroyed,  their  children's  blood 
to  be  shed  upon  the  marble  pavements  of  Rome.  Nothing  was 
to  remain.  Down  came  the  conqueror;  his  hordes  were  seen 
crowding  the  snowy  summits  of  the  Alps  ;  their  barbarous  lan- 
guage was  heard  re-echoing  amongst  the  valleys  of  the  Tyrol  and 
of  northern  Italy,  and  at  length  they  came  as  far  as  the  city  of 
Mantua  ;  and  Rome,  the  persecutor,  Rome,  the  proud,  imperious 
mistress  of  the  world,  fell  on  her  knees  to  one  man  and  prayed 
that  one  man  to  save  her,  for  he  alone  could  do  it,  and  that  one 
man  was  the  Bishop,  the  Pope  of  Rome.  His  name  was  Leo, 
and  he  is  known  in  history  by  the  title  of  "  the  Great."  Great 
before  God,  because  of  his  personal  sanctity,  great  before  the 
Church,  because  of  his  empire  over  her  as  her  visible  head  and 
the  representative  of  her  divine  founder  ;  great  before  the  world 
because  of  his  learning ;  great  in  the  history  of  Rome  because 
his  arm  alone  saved  her  from  destruction.  He  went  forth  from 
the  city;  he  traveled  into  the  north  of  Italy,  and  he  found  Attila, 
the  Scourge  of  God,  surrounded  by  his  myriads,  his  hundreds  of 
thousands  of  warriors.  He  came  near  the  river  Mincio,  near 
the  present  city  of  Mantua.  The  man  to  whom  he  was  going 
did  not  believe  in  God ;  the  man  to  whom  he  was  about 
to  present  himself  was  never  known  to  spare  a  human  being. 
The  historians  of  the  time  tell  us  that  the  women,  when  he 
turned  his  fiery  eye  upon  them,  fainted  away  from  terror;  that 
the  very  stoutest  soldier  in  his  army  quailed  like  a  coward 
and  trembled  before  the  terrible  tiger-glance  of  the  "  Scourge 
of  God." 

This  was  the  man  to  whom  the  Pope  of  Rome  went.  He 
found  him  in  his  camp,  surrounded  by  his  barbaric  splendor  and 
by  the  spoils  of  Italy.     He  came  into  his  presence,  appearing 


332  What  ike  Popes  did  for  Rome. 

before  him  with  his  tiara  on  head,  cape  on  shoulders,  crcsier 
in  hand.  He  appeared  as  if  he  was  a  vision  from  God,  armed 
with  the  terrors  of  the  Most  High,  and  he  said  to  him  :  "  Oh, 
tyrant !  oh,  blood-stained  and  merciless ;  thus  sayeth  the  Lord 
God  of  heaven,  thou  shalt  never  lay  a  hand  upon  Rome."  The 
warriors  who  stood  around  expected  that  this  terrific  man 
would  rise  up  in  his  strength,  and  with  his  iron  mace  would 
shatter  to  earth  the  man  who  thus  dared  to  address  him.  What 
was  their  astonishment  when  Attila  bowed  his  head  in  his  hands, 
covered  his  averted  face,  and  said,  '*  Take  him  away,  put  him 
away,  I  promise  him  that  I  will  not  approach  that  city  which 
he  protects."  So  terrified  was  this  awful  man  at  the  sight  of 
the  Pope,  that  next  day  he  sounded  the  trumpets  to  his  army 
and  crossed  the  Alps  again,  and  returned  into  his  native  forests 
of  Pannonia,  and  there  he  sickened  and  died,  all  from  the  terror 
of  having  seen  the  Vicar  of  Jesus  Christ.  And  when  his  amazed 
warriors  said  to  him  :  "  Oh,  master,  how  comes  it  to  pass  that 
you,  who  were  never  afraid  of  tens  of  thousands  of  soldiers  be- 
fore you,  and  of  the  bravest  kings  and  generals  in  the  world, 
how  is  it  that  you  quailed  before  this  unarmed  man?"  and  he 
answered :  "  I  looked  at  him  and  then  lifted  up  my  eyes,  and  I 
saw  in  the  air  above  him  two  terrible  figures,  shining  out  as  if 
the  brightness  of  ten  thousand  suns  were  upon  them,  and  they 
both  came  with  angry  countenances,  and  their  flowing  garments 
overshadowed  and  overspread  him  and  covered  him  as  he  spoke 
to  me,  and  in  their  hands  were  flaming  swords  directed  towards 
me,  so  I  knew  he  was  a  man  protected  by  heaven  and  I  was 
afraid  of  him."  The  figures,  the  glorious  figures  that  overshad- 
owed the  Pope  of  Rome  and  that  brandished  the  sword  of  God, 
were  the  figures  of  Peter  and  of  Paul,  whose  bodies  lay  that 
day  beneath  the  Vatican  temple  in  Rome. 

What  did  the  Popes  do  for  Rome  ?  A  few  years  after,  another 
king,  as  terrible  as  Attila,  appeared.  Genseric,  the  unconquera- 
ble leader  of  the  great  Vandal  race,  marched  down  upon  Italy, 
and  spread  terror  and  devastation  on  every  side.  Once  more 
was  heard  the  cry,  resounding  from  three  hundred  thousand 
warriors'  lips  :  "  To  Rome  ;  give  us  Rome,  that  we  may  enrich 
ourselves  with  its  plunder,  and  that  we  may  walk  in  the  blood 
of  its  inhabitants."  The  cry  was  heard  :  "  To  Rome,  to  Rome." 
Once  more  Rome,  on  her  knees,  implores  Leo,  and  the  aged 


What  the  Popes  did  for  Rome.  333 

man  rises  from  his  pontifical  throne  and  goes  out.  The  Vandals 
were  within  six  miles  of  the  city.  Their  barbaric  cries  were 
heard  in  the  streets,  and  re-echoed  in  the  public  places  in  Rome, 
striking  the  chill  of  terror,  as  of  death,  into  its  inhabitants,  as 
within  six  miles  of  the  city  they  pitched  their  tents.  Another 
day,  yea,  another  half  day,  Rome  would  have  been  even  as  Pal- 
myra in  the  desert,  or  Thebes,  which  can  scarcely  be  found  to- 
day. Leo  went  forth  again,  and  again  standing  before  the  bar- 
baric chieftain,  he  said  to  him :  "  All  the  power  of  the  earth  is 
given  to  thee  ;  no  hand  can  resist  thee  ;  and  Rome  lies  within 
thy  grasp,  yet  I,  I  tell  thee,  and  my  commission  is  from  Heaven, 
that  I  stand  between  thee  and  Rome,  and  into  Rome  thou  shalt 
never  enter,"  Like  the  spirit  of  evil,  as  he  fled,  in  the  day  of 
God's  first  victory,  before  the  arm  of  the  great  archangel 
Michael,  so  fled,  in  Italy,  the  barbaric  king  and  his  thousands 
and  myriads  of  soldiers,  before  the  one  word  and  the  one  up- 
lifted arm  of  the  Pope  of  Rome. 

To-day  the  ungrateful  Italians  have  hurled  him  for  a  time 
from  his  throne.  To-day  the  enemies  of  God  and  His  Church 
have  dared  to  lift  their  hand  and  pluck  the  ancient  crown  which 
Rome,  of  her  own  free-will,  set  upon  the  brows  of  her  saviour ; 
from  these  honored  and  glorious  brows,  that  have  worn  it  for 
more  than  a  thousand  years.  To-day  men,  calling  themselves 
Christians  and  Catholics,  tell  the  Pope  of  Rome  that  he  is  no 
longer  to  have  a  throne,  no  palace,  nor  a  house,  nor  a  home 
within  her  walls.  These  walls  would  not  exist  to-day,  not  a 
vestige  of  the  once  glorious  imperial  mistress  of  the  world 
would  remain  ;  the  traveler  might  seek  in  vain  in  the  white 
sandy  plains  of  the  Campagna  for  the  faintest  traces  of  ancient 
Rome,  were  it  not  for  the  man  whom  ungrateful  Italy  tells  to- 
day to  depart,  and  that  he  is  to  have  no  longer  a  place  within 
the  walls  of  Rome.  But  shall  he  depart?  Shall  the  pontifical 
crown  go  down  into  the  dust  ?  Shall  the  hand  that  saved  Rome 
be  no  longer  permitted  to  wave  its  blessings  from  her  ancient 
imperial  walls  ?  Two  hundred  millions  of  Catholics,  from  end 
to  end  of  the  earth,  send  forth  a  voice  as  of  one  man,  and  that 
one  voice  says :  "  No,  never ;  we  never  will  permit  our  Holy 
Father  to  be  driven  from  Rome,  the  place  of  his  rightful  sover- 
eignty." That  voice,  that  loud,  imperious  note,  is  "  Rome  is 
ours,  and  we  have  a  right  to  it ;  "  as  I  shall  prove  to  you,  that 


334  What  the  Popes  did  for  Rome. 

note  goes  forth  in  every  language  that  is  spoken  under  the  sun. 
It  goes  forth  and  re-echoes  in  the  islands  far  away  in  the  lone 
Pacific.  It  is  heard  resounding  in  the  primeval  forests  of 
Australia  and  New  Zealand.  It  comes  from  the  lips  of  the 
scarcely  reclaimed  yet  sanctified  savage  of  these  aboriginal 
tribes.  It  is  heard  in  the  voice  of  the  Japanese  and  Chinese, 
converted  to  Catholicity,  and  it  is  heard  on  the  lips  of  the  glorious 
Jesuit  lingering  in  his  Chinese  prison,  awaiting  for  the  crown  of 
martyrdom.  It  is  heard  throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of 
glorious  young  America.  It  resounds  amidst  the  snows  of  the 
North.  It  re-echoes  throughout  Europe  in  every  tongue.  It  is 
caught  up  in  the  ancient  Emerald  Isle,  thrown  out  into  the 
Western  Ocean.  The  faithful  old  land  speaks  as  if  every  sham- 
rock upon  her  soil  were  gifted  with  a  voice,  and  the  voice  is : 
"  The  Pope  forever,  and  he  shall  remain." 

Throughout  the  ages  of  Christianity  the  Almighty  has  per- 
mitted many  great  persecutions  to  fall  upon  His  Church,  There 
is  not  a  single  point  of  her  doctrine  that  has  not  been  again  and 
again  assailed.  There  is  not  a  single  truth  in  her  volume  of 
sacred  deposit  of  divine  revelations  that  has  not  been  sealed 
over  and  over  again  with  martyrs'  blood.  There  are  those  here 
this  evening,  sitting  upon  this  platform,  members  of  an  order 
instituted  for  the  last  three  hundred  years,  familiar  to  us  all — for 
the  name  falls  upon  the  ear  and  heart  and  thrills  us  with  joy 
and  with  emotions  of  love — the  Jesuits.  There  is  scarcely  a 
clime  under  the  sun  that  has  not  been  sanctified,  and  where  the 
Catholic  Church  has  not  been  sealed  with  the  martyr's  blood  of 
the  glorious,  persecuted  sons  of  the  great  Ignatius.  They  are 
persecuted  to-day,  and  I  speak  of  them  now  as  simply  an  illus- 
tration of  what  I  lay  down  as  a  principle,  that  there  is  not  a 
single  truth  in  the  Catholic  deposit  of  doctrine  that  has  not  been 
assailed  in  some  age  or  other,  that  has  not  cried  out  loudly  for 
defense  against  her  traitorous  foes,  and  I  speak  of  them  now  be- 
cause they  are  under  the  dire  persecution  which  is  so  familiar  to 
them.  The  most  powerful  hand  in  the  world  is  raised  against 
them  ;  the  most  powerful  armed  hand  on  the  face  of  the  earth ; 
the  hand  that  to-day  can  strike  down  monarchs  and  build  up 
thrones,  has  concentrated  all  its  power  to  dash  the  holy  and 
sacred  Order  of  Jesus  to  pieces.  The  hand  that  was  uplifted 
before  Attila  is  uplifted  in  defense — the  hand  of  the  Pope  oi 


What  the  Popes  did  for  Rome.  335 

Rome.  As  well  might  Attila  have  dashed  his  force  against  the 
forbidden  walls,  to  recoil  in  utter  destruction,  as  any  power  of 
earth  seek  to  destroy  the  glorious  Order,  which  alone,  amid  all 
the  orders  in  the  Church,  represents  the  risen  and  the  glorious 
life  of  Jesus  Christ. 

Now,  my  friends,  from  age  to  age  in  the  Church  we  find  this 
great  principal  truth.  For  nearly  three  hundred  years  the 
Catholic  Church  was  persecuted  on  the  question  of  the  unity  of 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  Thousands  of  martyrs  shed  their  blood 
for  it.  The  Arian  heresy  had  scarcely  subsided,  when  the 
Church  was  called  once  more  to  suffer  in  defense  of  the  Blessed 
Virgin  Mother,  the  Mother  of  God.  Thus,  from  age  to  age 
every  point  of  her  doctrine  has  been  assailed,  and  to-day  the 
powers  that  have  assailed  her  vainly  for  eighteen  hundred  years 
have  concentrated  their  force  against  the  Pope  of  Rome,  and 
he  is  the  great  centre  of  their  attack ;  but  invariably  the  spirit 
of  the  Catholic  Church  has  come  forth  with  a  mighty  power 
and  force  in  proportion  as  each  doctrine  was  assailed,  and  pre- 
cisely that  point  of  her  doctrine  that  was  assailed  was  the  point 
for  which  the  Church  came  out,  struck  her  blows,  lifted  up  her 
voice,  and  shed  her  blood,  and  to-day  the  touchstone  of  the 
Catholic  Church,  the  very  point  upon  which  all  her  energies 
are  rallied,  upon  which  her  voice  is  loudest  in  its  acclaim  of  her 
faith,  for  which  she  is  most  ready  to  shed  her  blood,  is  in  the 
maintaining  of  the  glory,  the  position,  the  headship  of  the  Pope 
of  Rome.  The  proof  lies  here.  Why  are  the  Jesuits  persecu- 
ted beyond  all  others  to-day !  Because  the  wicked,  infidel,  and 
heretical  world  imagines  and  believes  that  they,  beyond  any 
other  order  in  the  Church,  are  the  great  supporters  of  the  Pope. 
Why  does  Bismarck  assail  them  ?  Because  Bismarck,  like  Attila 
of  old,  like  Genseric  of  old,  has  had  the  hardihood  to  come  out 
in  front  of  the  soldiers  and  say :  "  I  challenge  the  Pope  of 
Rome !  "  Oh,  foolish  man ;  he  might  as  well  challenge  Jesus 
Christ. 

What  did  the  Popes  do  for  Rome?  Three  centuries  passed 
away  after  Leo  had  twice  saved  it.  Italy  was  under  the  power 
of  the  Lombards  ;  a  nominal  allegiance  was  given  to  the  em- 
peror, who  lived  away  in  Constantinople,  immersed  in  pleasure 
and  luxuries,  and  surrounded  by  his  musicians  and  his  artists — 
what  did  he  care  for  Italy?     He  only  endeavored  to  draw  as 


33^  W/iat  the  Popes  did  for  Rome. 

much  money  as  he  could  from  it.  He  looked  upon  the  people 
as  only  fair  game  to  be  plundered,  just  as  England  has  looked 
upon  Ireland  for  many  a  terrible  year.  They  are  poor;  they 
are  trodden  to  the  earth  ;  if  they  have  another  guinea,  they 
take  it  from  them  and  grasp  it.  Thus  did  the  Emperors  of  Con- 
stantinople treat  the  Church.  The  Italian  people  cried  in  vain 
to  them,  and  said :  "You  are  taking  our  money — you  are  tak- 
ing our  taxes ;  why,  then,  don't  you  preserve  us,  and  save  us 
from  our  enemies?"  Every  age,  every  year  brought  down  new 
armies  of  barbarians ;  the  Goths,  the  Vandals,  the  Visigoths — 
all  these  swept  year  after  year  down,  destroyed  the  people, 
ravaged  the  lands,  plundered  and  demolished  the  cities,  and  at 
length  the  people  of  Rome,  in  the  eighth  century,  turned  to 
the  Pope,  and  said:  "You  have  saved  our  city  over  and  over 
again  ;  you  have  saved  our  lives  ;  you  are  the  only  man  that  can 
protect  us.  Let  us,  in  the  name  of  God,  crown  this  man,  and 
let  him  be  our  temporal  sovereign ;  "  and  they  set  the  crown  of 
the  Roman  Empire  upon  his  head,  and  they  said  :  "  The  man 
that  is  the  head  of  our  faith,  and  that  has  saved  our  lives,  will 
be  our  ruler ;"  and  thus  it  was  that  the  Pope  came  to  be  the 
King  of  Rome. 

What  did  the  Pope  do  for  Rome?  About  the  year  750 — 
about  the  middle  of  the  eighth  century — the  Saracens,  gather- 
ing their  forces  in  hundreds  of  thousands,  made  a  tremendous 
invasion  of  Europe.  For  the  preceding  centuries,  men  were  ac- 
customed to  look  for  the  scourge  from  the  north ;  the  nations 
who  expected  ruin  and  destruction  awaited  it  from  the  fortresses 
of  Russia  and  of  Tartary,  in  the  north  ;  and  now  the  voice  is 
heard  again — the  murmur,  the  thunder  of  invasion.  Whole 
nations  are  on  the  march  ;  all  the  southern  nations  are  aroused — 
all  the  great  nations  of  Europe  and  Africa.  The  Saracens,  the 
people  who  had  embraced  the  Mussulman  religion,  all  armed, 
desperate  men,  made  an  invasion  of  Europe  through  Spain, 
sweeping  up  into  France,  and  were  preparing  to  turn  around 
and  sweep  down  over  Italy,  and  civilization,  humanly  speaking, 
seemed  to  be  threatened  with  utter  destruction.  Once  again, 
and  now  not  Rome  alone,  but  all  Christendom  turns  to  the 
Pope  of  Rome,  Gregory  III.,  who  was  then  seated  upon  St. 
Peter's  chair.  They  cried  out  to  him  :  "  O  Father,  you  alone 
can  save  us  !  "     The  cities  of  Spain  were  in  ruins  and  in  flames, 


What  the  Popes  did  for  Rome.  337 

the  people  were  destroyed  ;  there  was  only  one  choice  given  to 
them — renounce  Jesus  Christ  or  die.  The  Pope  alone  was 
equal  to  the  occasion.  He  sent  his  legates  into  France,  and 
aroused  the  loving  heart  of  Charles  Martel.  He  sent  his  mes- 
sengers through  Germany  and  the  northern  countries.  They 
rallied  the  Christian  nations  whom  the  missionaries  had  just 
converted  to  the  faith ;  they  brought  them  together,  these 
gigantic  sons  of  the  German  forests  and  the  northern  parts  of 
Europe — the  sturdy,  and  the  nimble,  and  the  brave,  and,  in 
spite  of  the  misfortunes  of  to-day,  the  still  glorious  Frenchmen. 
They  assembled,  led  by  one  of  the  greatest  heroes  that  ever 
God  gave  to  this  world  or  to  His  Church — Charles  Martel. 
He  was  called  Charles  of  the  Hammer,  for  he  went  into  the 
battlefield  clad  with  steel,  mounted  on  a  strong  horse  covered 
also  with  steel,  and  bearing  no  weapon  except  a  tremendous 
iron  bar  or  mace  with  a  great  knob  at  the  end  of  it,  with 
which  he  was  accustomed  to  dash  out  the  brains  of  his  adver- 
saries. 

Upon  the  plains  of  Poictiers,  in  the  south  of  France,  the- 
Christian  host  met  the  Saracens.  They  were  astonished  when 
they  saw  the  whole  country  around  covered  with  cavalry,  the 
horsemen  with  turbans  upon  their  heads,  men  clad  in  Oriental, 
splendor,  with  their  crooked  cimeters  gleaming  in  the  air. 
There  they  hovered  around  in  thousands  and  tens  of  thousands, 
so  that  the  Christians,  wherever  they  looked,  beheld  the  whole 
country  filled  with  Saracens.  And  now  the  delegates  of  Greg- 
ory HI.  move  among  the  ranks;  the  voice  of  the  monk,  the 
preacher,  the  bishop,  the  legate  is  heard ;  the  cry  of  Christ  and 
His  Holy  Church  is  raised  ;  the  banner  that  Gregory  blessed  in 
Rome  is  uplifted  and  flung  to  the  glorious  breeze.  For  ten 
days  the  two  mighty  armies  stood  before  each  other  like  two 
strong  athletes  looking  at  one  anather,  measuring  each 
other,  until,  on  Saturday,  the  Mussulraen  arose  early  in  the 
morning  and  prayed.  The  Christians,  in  their  camp,  had 
a  holy  Mass  celebrated  before  each  regiment.  Then  they 
stood  arrayed  for  a  moment,  front  to  front,  the  cymbals  of 
the  Moors  clashing ;  their  army  dashed  forward,  and  thousands 
of  the  bravest  horsemen  in  the  world  dashed  themselves 
right  up  against  the  steel-clad  line  of  the  Frank,  the  Gaul,  the 
German  ;  and  just  as  the  ocean  wave  dashes  against  the  sea- 

22 


338  W/ia^  the  Popes  did  for  Rome. 

bound  coast,  dashes  against  the  mighty  rocks  only  to  recoil 
again  in  foam,  so,  twenty  times,  did  the  Moors  renew  their 
charge,  and  dash  with  loud  cries,  and  as  with  the  fury  of  hell, 
against  the  ranks  of  the  Christians.  That  barrier  of  ice,  that 
wall  of  brass  was  unmoved,  and,  after  twenty  charges,  a  voice 
was  heard — a  warrior  arose  in  his  stirrups,  waved  his  mighty 
iron  mace,  cried  out  from  beneath  his  helmet  of  steel :  "  For 
Christ  and  for  His  holy  Church  !  "  The  ground  trembled  and 
shook  beneath  them  ;  the  cry  that  was  heard  along  those  steel- 
clad  ranks  was  for  Christ ;  and  the  soldiers  dashed  in  upon  the 
Saracens,  the  Moors,  and  swept  them  from  before  them  until 
the  very  soil  of  the  plains  of  Poictiers  was  trodden  deep  and 
wetted  with  the  blood  of  Saracens ;  and  Christendom  was 
saved,  Europe  was  saved,  civilization  was  saved,  and,  in  that 
day,  the  whole  world  which  is  now  civilized  recognized  in 
Gregory  III.  of  Rome  the  great  mind  that  conceived,  and  the 
great  heart  that  effected  their  redemption. 

What  did  the  Popes  do  for  Rome?  Centuries  passed  away, 
and  now  the  Kings  of  Rome  found  themselves  in  the  midst  of  a 
city  which  was  a  sanctuary  of  all  that  was  most  precious  of  the 
'remains  of  ancient  science  and  art — Rome,  the  precious  treasury 
of  all  the  most  ancient  things  of  antiquity.  Ah!  they  guarded 
it  and  touched  it  with  a  tender  and  scientific  hand  ;  its  ancient 
j-uins  were  preserved  and  guarded  most  jealously.  When 
•crumbling,  by  the  action  of  time,  to  their  ruin,  they  were  upheld 
by  the  lofty  buttresses  and  strong  walls  that  were  thrown  up 
against  them,  without  marring  their  beauty  or  in  the  least  dis- 
guising their  ancient  splendor.  Every  ancient  monument  of 
pagan  Rome,  everything  that  the  student  of  history  and  the 
antiquarian  loves  to  behold,  everything  that  illustrates  the 
studies  of  the  young  scholar,  all  that  Rome  has  to-day  has  been 
preserved  to  her  by  the  action  of  her  Pontiffs,  guarding  them, 
■caring  for  them,  propping  them  up  with  tender  and  scien- 
tific hands.  An  untold  treasure  of  money  has  been  lavished 
in  preserving  the  ancient  vestiges  of  the  beauty  of  imperial 
Rome. 

At  length  came  the  year  1309.  In  that  year,  such  were  the 
revolts  and  such  were  the  insurrections  and  disturbances  in 
Rome  and  in  the  neighboring  cities,  that  the  Pope,  in  order  to 
show  the  Romans  that  they  could  not  get  on  without  him,  in 


W/iai  the  Popes  did  for  Rome.  339 

order  to  teach  them  a  salutary  lesson,  got  up  one  morning,  like 
a  sensible  man,  if  you  will,  and  he  said  :  "  The  whole  world  is 
before  me  ;  these  people  seem  to  think  I  am  an  incumbrance 
to  them,  and  I  will  go  away  and  leave  them."  And  so  he  went 
away  to  Avignon,  in  France.  Now,  mark  what  followed.  The 
day  the  Pope  left  Rome  there  were  one  hundred  and  fifty  thou- 
sand inhabitants  in  that  city.  There  was  left  to  them  peace,  and 
comfort,  and  plenty.  In  fact,  they  didn't  know  what  to  do  with 
themselves  they  were  so  well  off.  The  Pope  remained  away  for 
seventy  years,  and  in  the  year  1371  Gregory  XI.  returned  to 
Rome — came  back  to  live  in  the  city.  He  left  it  one  hundred  and 
fifty  thousand  strong.  How  many  thousand  do  you  think  were 
in  Rome  the  day  he  came  back  ?  Seventeen  thousand  !  And  how 
were  they  living  ?  They  were  half  starved  ;  they  did  not  know 
where  to  look  to  get  a  morsel  of  bread.  The  historian  tells  us 
that  the  grass  was  growing,  and  the  cows  were  feeding  on  the 
grass  as  it  grew,  in  the  streets  of  Rome  the  day  the  Pope  came 
back.  Rome  says  she  can  do  without  them.  Rome  does  not 
say  it  to-day.  I  have  lived  twelve  years  in  Rome.  I  know  the 
Roman  people.  They  are  as  anxious  for  their  Pope  as  we  are. 
But  you  can  easily  understand  the  position  in  which  a  quiet, 
timid  people  are  placed,  with  the  riff-raff  and  vagabonds  of  all 
Italy  and  France  thrown  in  upon  them,  looking  for  something 
to  plunder  and  something  to  steal,  who,  knowing  there  were 
three  hundred  and  sixty-five  churches  in  Rome,  said:  "I  want 
to  rob  somebody,  and  the  best  person  to  rob  is  a  priest,  because 
he  won't  strike  you  ;  he  won't  draw  a  revolver."  "  The  churches 
in  Rome,"  they  said,  "  are  full  of  gold  and  silver,  splendid  chal- 
ices, magnificent  furniture  ;  they  are  worth  robbing.  Now  that 
we  find  the  King  of  Italy  is  going  to  plunder  them  on  his  own 
account,  we  will  go  in  and  help  him,  and  take  our  pickings  on 
the  way."  In  this  way,  at  this  moment,  Rome  is  filled  as  a 
cesspool  with  all  the  infamous  dregs  of  the  population,  the 
blackguards,  and  villains,  and  atheists  of  Italy  and  France. 
What  wonder  the  poor  Roman  people  do  not  know  what  to  do 
with  themselves?  The  Roman  father  and  mother  to-day  cannot 
send  their  children  to  school.  The  first  thing  a  child  will  be 
taught  is  that  there  is  no  God.  A  Roman  lady  cannot  go  to 
mass  in  the  morning.  When  she  is  seen  coming  out  of  the 
church  she  is  insulted  by  the  first  rude  vagabond  that  meets 


340  What  the  Popes  did  for  Rome. 

her.  The  Pope  himself  cannot  leave  the  Vatican  Palace ;  it  is 
true  he  is  not  a  prisoner,  he  can  go  out  if  he  likes ;  but  he  will 
go  out  to  hear  the  name  of  his  God  and  all  that  he  holds  most 
sacred  blasphemed. 

What  did  the  Popes  do  for  Rome  ?  Coming  down  from  the  days 
of  Gregory  XL,  who  came  back  to  Rome  and  found  but  seven- 
teen thousand  inhabitants,  and  in  twenty  years  time  after  his 
return  there  were  one  hundred  and  sixty-two  thousand  people 
in  the  city,  happy  because  the  pope  was  back  amongst  them  ; 
coming  down  from  his  days,  ah !  what  did  the  man  who  is  suffer- 
ing in  Rome  to-day,  what  did  he  do  for  Rome  ?  It  was  the 
boast  of  Augustus  that  he  found  Rome  a  city  of  brick,  and  that 
he  left  it  at  his  death  a  city  of  marble.  I  say,  having  seen 
Rome  in  the  first  days  of  the  Pontificate  of  Pius  IX.,  and  having 
seen  it  almost  yesterday,  after  he  had  passed  his  hand  over  it, 
Pius  IX.  can  say,  more  truly  than  did  Augustus  :  "  I  found 
Rome  a  city  of  brick  and  I  have  left  it  a  city  of  marble."  He 
built  lodging-houses  for  the  poor;  he  put  fountains  in  the  parts 
of  the  city  where  the  poor  people  had  not  fresh,  clear  water  to 
drink,  I  have  seen  him  myself  in  that  quarter  of  Rome  in 
which  I  lived.  He  erected  there  a  magnificent  fountain  be- 
cause the  poor  people  complained  to  him  ;  he  was  in  the  habit 
of  walking  amongst  them,  getting  outside  a  little  from  the 
crowded  parts  of  Rome,  alighting  from  his  carriage  and  walk- 
ing ;  and  then  every  child  that  passed,  and  every  poor  woman 
that  came  along  knelt  down  and  got  his  blessing,  and  if  they 
wanted  anything  they  told  him.  I  have  seen  the  women  my- 
self go  to  him  and  cry  out  to  him  on  their  knees :  "  Oh,  Holy 
Father,  isn't  it  too  bad  that  we  can't  wash  our  clothes,  we 
haven't  any  water  and  we  have  to  wait ;  we  only  get  a  little 
water  in  the  week,  and  if  we  are  not  ready  then  we  cannot 
wash  for  the  rest  of  the  week.  Look  at  the  state  we  are  in," 
says  one  old  woman,  holding  up  her  gown.  There  was  the  Pope 
smiling  at  her,  and  saying:  "I  am  nearly  as  poor  as  yourself, 
but  still  I  will  get  you  a  fountain."  He  erected  a  splendid 
fountain  ;  he  brought  the  water  along  from  a  distant  aqueduct, 
and  gave  them  three  great  streams  of  the  purest,  freshest, 
finest  water,  flowing  out  in  marble  basins,  flowing  up  into  a 
great  hall  that  he  built,  open  at  all  times,  always  water 
running  through  it,  and   there   they  could   enjoy  themselves. 


What  the  Popes  did  for  Rome.  341 

It  was  near  my  convent.    The  day  that  the  fountain  was  opened 
he    came     and    stood     in     the    midst    of   the    poor    people, 
one  telling  him  :  "  I  took  a  drink  of  the  water  yesterday,  the 
finest  water  I  ever  drank."     Another  woman  coming  and  clap- 
ping her  hands :  "  Now  we  can  have  our  duds  cleaned."     There 
is  the  aged  man  in  the  midst  of  them,  smiling,  feasting  his  heart 
because  he  had  found  the  means  to  supply  a  want  for  his  peo- 
ple.    He  founded   hospitals  the  most   magnificent  in  Europe. 
There  is  no  city  in  Europe  that  has  a  better  hospital  than  the 
San  Spirito,  which  Pius  IX.  founded  in  Rome.     There  the  poor 
man  goes  in  and  finds  everything  prepared  for  him.     There  are 
no  set  hours  when  his  wife  and  his  children  come  to  see  him 
while  he  is  sick,  and  are  kept  away  at  all  other  times  and  have 
the  door  shut  in  their  faces.    The  door  is  swinging  on  its  hinges 
from  morning  to  night,  and   they  are  with  him  just  the  same 
as  if  he  was  at  home  with  his  family;  there  are  doctors,  the 
best  that  can  be  procured  ;  nurses  in  abundance  attend  him  with 
comforts  of  every  kind  ;  the  priest  going  in  and  out  constantly, 
so  that  there  are  consolation  and  sacrament  for  those  who  re- 
quire it,  as  soon  as  desired.     I  have  visited  this  hospital,  have 
walked  through  it  over  and  over  again,  and  there  they  were,  sur- 
rounded not  by  the  legal  charity  of  political  economy,  not  at- 
tended by  careless,  heedless  nurses  that  had  no  interest  in  them 
except  to  draw  their  pay,  but   attended  by  the  priests  of  St. 
John  of  God,  who  have  vowed  to  live  and  die  in  the  hospitals 
in  the  service  of  the  sick,  and  by  the  Sisters  of  Charity ;  visited 
every  other  day  as  they  were  by  the  aged  man  that  built  the 
house  for  them — for  his  delight  was  to  pull  up  his  carriage  at  the 
door  and  get  out  and  go  in  amongst  them — the  Holy  Father,  the 
Vicar  of  Christ ;  and  as  long  as  he  had  a  shilling  in  his  purse  he 
put  it  into  the  sick  man's  hands,  blessed  him  and  passed  on,  so 
that  actually  he  lifted  up  the  load  of  sickness  and  sorrow  from 
the  shoulders  of  the  poor  by  his  own  kindness  and  his  generosity. 
What  did  the  Pope  do  for  Rome  ?    He  built  the  finest  church 
in  the  world  after  St.  Peter's,  over  the  place  where  St.  Paul  was 
beheaded,  outside  the  walls  of  Rome.     He  made  the  most  mag- 
nificent streets ;  he  widened  out  the  public  places  ;  he  establish- 
ed the  best  laws,  administered  justice  freely  and  cheaply  to  his 
people  ;  he  saved  them  from  heavy  taxation.    On  the  house  that 
I  lived  in,  I  calculated  from  the  amount  of  rent  that  we  paid,  and 


342  What  the  Popes  did  for  Rome. 

the  amount  of  land  that  we  possessed,  what  the  taxes  would 
be  in  Ireland,  and  I  found  they  would  be  exactly  £\6  a  year, 
$80  a  year  in  gold.  What  do  you  think  were  the  taxes  that  we 
paid  ?  and  we  were  more  heavily  taxed  than  the  lay  people,  be- 
cause Pius  IX.  always  put  the  heaviest  tax  on  the  priests,  and 
said :  "  Let  us  spare  the  people  ;  you  pay  me  the  money."  The 
tax  we  paid  was  $15  a  year,  instead  of  $80.  They  had  no  con- 
scription :  the  father  and  mother  could  do  what  they  liked  with 
their  children.  There  was  no  one  to  interfere  with  them.  They 
sent  them  to  school ;  they  knew  that  they  would  neither  hear 
nor  see  anything  bad  in  these  schools,  conducted  by  the  priests 
of  St.  Joseph  Calasanctius  ;  for  the  poor,  conducted  by  the 
Christian  Brothers,  and  conducted  for  the  better  class  by  the 
Jesuit  Fathers ;  and  there  they  were  in  hundreds,  a  school  in 
almost  every  street.  Nay,  more,  at  eight  o'clock  in  the  morn- 
ing you  saw  the  priests  of  St.  Joseph  Calasanctius  and  the  Chris- 
tian Brothers  go  out  ringing  a  bell,  calling  through  the  streets, 
making  the  parents  send  out  their  boys  to  school.  If  they  had 
no  breakfast  for  them,  they  would  give  them  a  breakfast  at 
school ;  and  then,  in  the  evening,  instead  of  letting  the  children 
out  wild  on  the  streets  to  return  home,  perhaps  picking  up  evil, 
there  you  saw  the  children  marching  out  like  soldiers,  and  after 
each  ten  or  twelve  of  them  a  priest,  and  he  brought  them  each 
to  the  father  or  mother's  door,  and  handed  them  in,  and  said  : 
"  Here  ;  you  gave  them  to  me  this  morning." 

What  did  Pius  IX.  do  for  Rome?  If  you  want  to  know 
what  Pius  IX.  did,  all  you  have  to  do  is  to  look  to  what 
Victor  Emmanuel  is  doing,  and  just  take  the  opposite  of  that, 
and  you  will  know  what  the  Pope  did  for  Rome.  Victor  Em- 
manuel is  driving  out  the  priests,  so  that  the  sick  and  dying 
may  not  have  the  ministration  of  their  religion.  The  rule  in 
Rome,  under  the  Popes,  was,  when  a  sick  man  sent  for  a  parish 
priest,  the  parish  priest  went  there,  and  if  he  found  the  man  was 
dangerously  ill  he  was  bound  to  remain  in  the  house,  never  to 
leave  that  bedside,  until  the  man  was  either  dead  or  pronounced 
out  of  danger.  Not  the  slightest  fear,  day  or  night,  that  any 
one  would  die  without  the  ministry  of  religion  and  the  sacra- 
ments there.  Victor  Emmanuel  has  taken  the  schools  from  the 
Jesuits,  and  he  has  given  them  to  the  Jews.  God  bless  the 
mark  !     Christian   children  are  to  be  taught  by  Jews.    I  have 


W/iai  the  Popes  did  for  Rome.  343 

the  greatest  respect  for  the  Jews,  as  I  have  for  every  class  of 
people.  I  disrespect  no  man.  I  despise  no  one.  There  is  only- 
one  in  this  world  whom  I  despise,  and  whom  I  hope  to  have 
always  the  grace  to  despise,  and  that  is  Father  Tom  Burke.  I 
have  the  greatest  respect  for  the  Jews.  I  know,  as  jewelers,  and 
diamond-setters,  and  watchmakers  they  are  splendid,  perhaps 
the  best  that  we  have.  I  know  also,  as  merchants,  and  as  men 
of  business,  they  are  among  the  most  respectable  and  polite  of 
our  citizens.  But,  tell  me,  would  you  like  to  send  one  of  your 
children  to  learn  his  catechism  from  the  Jews?  The  first  thing 
that  a  Jew  would  be  obliged  to  tell  the  child  would  be,  that 
there  never  was  so  great  a  liar,  nor  so  great  a  malefactor,  nor  so 
wicked  a  man  on  the  face  of  this  earth,  as  our  Lord  and  Saviour 
Jesus  Christ.  Now,  I  have  seen  the  men  that  Victor  Emmanuel 
has  put  in  place  of  the  Jesuits,  to  teach  the  Roman  children. 

Victor  Emmanuel  has  passed  a  law  that  every  man  in  Rome, 
even  the  priest  at  the  altar,  is  liable  to  be  dragged  out  of  his 
house  and  put  into  the  ranks  as  a  common  soldier,  and  sent  out 
to  be  shot.  That  is  what  Victor  Emmanuel  is  doing.  You  may 
know  from  all  this  what  the  Pope  did  not  do,  or  rather  what  he 
did  do,  for  his  people.  Victor  Emmanuel  is  taxing  the 
people  so  that  the  cobbler  that  used  to  sit  in  his  bulk  mend- 
ing an  old  shoe  cannot  buy  an  awl,  nor  can  he  buy  a 
wax-end,  nor  can  he  buy  a  pound  of  sparables,  until  he  has 
first  paid  the  taxes.  Would  you  believe  it,  that  they  have 
brought  things  in  Rome  io  this  pass,  that  the  farmer  who 
goes  out  with  his  men  to  reap  the  corn  has  to  pay  taxes  on 
it  before  he  can  carry  it  into  the  barn,  and  then  again  when 
he  has  it  threshed,  and  is  going  to  take  it  to  the  mill,  he  must 
pay  taxes  on  it  the  third  time  before  he  can  take  it  out  of 
the  mill — upon  the  necessaries  of  life.  How  would  you  like 
that  ?  How  would  you  like  to  have  the  corn  taxed  in  the  field 
before  it  could  be  removed,  taxed  in  the  barn  while  it  was  being 
threshed,  and  then  taxed  a  third  time  at  the  mill ;  paying  all 
these  taxes  to  the  government,  profits  to  the  farmer,  profits 
to  the  baker ;  what  would  be  the  price  of  a  loaf  by  the  time  it 
came  into  your  hands? 

My  friends,  Rome  cannot  get  on  without  the  Pope.  To-day 
they  are  establishing  a  kind  of  government  there,  but  the 
thing  cannot  last.     It  has  been   tried   over    and   over   again. 


344  What  the  Popes  did  for  Rome. 

A  greater  man  than  ever  Victor  Emmanuel  was,  tried  to 
establish  a  government  in  Rome  against  the  Pope,  and  he  failed, 
and  that  man  was  the  great  Napoleon  I. ;  and  I  think  if  Napo- 
leon I.  failed,  we  may  easily  imagine  how  speedily  the  end  of 
Victor  Emmanuel's  business  may  come.  More  than  this.  If 
Victor  Emmanuel  had  the  power  of  a  thousand  Napoleons  the 
Catholic  world  would  be  more  than  a  match  for  him.  You  ask 
me  if  Pius  IX.  made  Rome  a  city  of  marble,  did  he  do  it  with- 
out money?  No.  He  spent  millions  and  millions  of  money  on 
Rome  during  the  twenty-five  years  of  his  pontificate.  Where 
did  he  get  the  money?  Did  he  get  it  from  the  Romans?  No. 
He  did  not  tax  them,  nor  ask  them  for  it.  Had  he  it  him- 
self? No.  Though  of  a  noble,  he  is  of  a  poor  family.  Where 
did  he  get  it  ?  He  got  it  from  the  Catholic  world.  Got  it  from 
you  and  from,  me,  and  he  has  invested  it  in  Rome,  and  it  is  our 
money,  and  Rome  is  ours,  and  we  shall  claim  our  rights.  Vic- 
tor Emmanuel  may  drive  out  the  Jesuit  at  the  bayonet's  point, 
we  will  bring  back  the  Jesuit  and  set  him  up  in  honor  and  in 
dignity.  Victor  Emmanuel  may  imagine  that  he  has  conquered, 
because  he  has  shaken,  the  Pontifical  throne.  Ah!  my  friends, 
it  is  not  so  easy  to  overturn  a  throne  whose  foundations  are  set 
deep  in  the  hearts  of  two  hundred  millions  of  men.  To-day 
we  are  called  upon  to  speak,  and  to  pray,  and  to  help.  To-mor- 
row or  next  day,  God — God  who  holds  the  destinies  of  the  nations 
in  his  hands — will  so  shake  the  world  that  he  will  give  an  oppor- 
tunity and  a  chance  to  the  manhood  of  the  Catholic  Church  to 
rush  in,  strike  a  strong  blow,  and  carry  the  Pope  in  triumph  to 
his  throne.  And  when  that  day  comes,  it  will  be  a  day  of  bene- 
diction to  Rome,  and  to  the  world — when  that  day  comes,  it  will 
not  be  necessary  to  have  seven  millions  of  men  under  arms  as 
there  are  in  Europe  to-day  ;  seven  million  of  men  whose  only 
work  is  to  learn  how  to  slaughter  one  another.  Seven  million 
of  young  men  living  in  idleness,  and  in  barrack  life,  and  in  sin. 
Seven  million  of  the  population  of  Europe  going  forth  at  the 
very  time  when  a  man's  character  is  to  be  formed  ;  when  they 
are  seventeen  years  old,  and  coming  back  when  they  are  three 
and  twenty,  confirmed  atheists  and  and  ruffians  from  their  as- 
sociation. Seven  million  of  men  trained  to  destroy  the  body, 
and  in  training  find  the  destruction  of  their  own  immortal 
souls. 


W/iaf  the  Popes  did  for  Rome.  345 

When  the  day  comes  that  the  Pope  of  Rome  will  be  estab- 
lished upon  his  time-honored  throne  again,  then  at  least  Europe 
and  the  world  will  have  the  benediction  of  one  throne  founded, 
not  in  blood,  but  in  eternal  right  and  justice.  All  honor  to  the 
martyred  dead ;  all  honor  to  those  who,  in  the  hour  of  danger, 
and  in  the  hour  that  brought  them  face  to  face  with  death  upon 
the  battle-field,  drew  the  sword  for  that  glorious  cause,  and  in 
the  most  magnificent  and  glorious  uniform  that  ever  yet  was 
donned  by  men,  the  uniform  of  the  soldier  fighting  for  his  spir- 
itual Father,  and  the  vicar  of  Jesus  Christ.  They  have  gone 
forth  few,  but  mighty  in  valor;  they  have  gone  forth  from  every 
nation,  because  the  cause  was  Catholic.  English  blood  was 
shed,  the  blood  of  Catholic  England ;  shoulder  to  shoulder,  the 
Catholic  Englishman  stood  with  the  stalwart  son  of  Erin,  and 
for  once  through  the  blessing  of  God  there  was  a  field  on  which 
the  Englishman  and  the  Irishman  could  mingle  their  blood  in 
the  same  glorious  cause  of  religion.  The  generous  blood  of 
France  was  shed  ;  the  blood  of  Germany  was  poured  out ;  in  a 
word,  every  Catholic  nation  had  its  representatives  there,  the 
highest,  and  the  best,  and  the  noblest  in  the  land  were  there, 
proud,  and  justly  proud,  to  have  the  blessing  and  the  privilege 
to  be  able  to  strike  a  blow,  and  shed  a  drop  of  blood  for  the 
Sovereign  Pontiff,  the  representative  of  their  God.  Now,  this 
Catholic  Union  to  which  you  belong  represents  in  a  special 
manner  the  spirit  and  the  devotion  of  the  Church  of  God  to-day. 
If  it  was  the  divinity  of  Christ  that  was  assailed  by  the  Arian- 
ism  of  this  day,  then  would  you  be  enrolled  in  the  glorious 
union  of  those  who  uphold  the  divinity  of  the  Son  of  God.  If 
it  was  the  maternity  of  the  Mother  of  God  that  was  assailed  to- 
day, then  would  the  Catholic  Church  enroll  you  as  amongst  her 
best  children  in  some  great  union  or  fraternity  to  assert  Mary's 
glory.  But  it  is  the  Pope  that  is  assailed,  and  you  of  the  Cath- 
olic Union  are  devoted  to  him  by  an  especial  bond,  and  bound 
in  the  fervor  of  your  faith  to  maintain  him  by  your  prayers,  by 
your  best  wishes,  by  your  outspoken  faith,  by  every  help  in 
your  power,  and  when  the  day  comes  to  strike  a  blow  for  him 
if  it  be  in  your  power  to  do  it. 

Fourteen  hundred  years  ago  St.  Ambrose  said :  "  Where 
Peter  is,  there  the  Church  of  God  is,"  and  to-day,  after  this 
fourteen  hundred  years,  the  Catholic  Union  of  New  York  says, 


34^  W/iat  the  Popes  did  for  Rome. 

"  We  are  banded  together  for  Peter,  whom  we  recognize  in 
Pius,  for  where  Pius  is,  there  the  Catholic  Church  is."  The 
time  of  your  membership  is  drawing  to  a  close.  The  members 
are  expected  to-morrow  to  surrender  their  tickets,  and  to  renew 
their  association  with  this  society.  I  charge  you,  as  Catholics, 
I  charge  you,  as  enlightened  Catholics,  I  charge  you,  as  fervent 
Catholics,  and  I  charge  many  amongst  you,  as  Irish  Catholics, 
that  every  man  amongst  you  renew  his  affiliation  and  associ- 
ation with  this  union.  Let  every  man  amongst  you  try  to 
spread  it  by  bringing  your  friends  within  its  salutary  and  glori- 
ous influence.  The  blessing  of  Pius  IX.  is  upon  it,  and  through 
it  upon  you.  The  blessing  of  that  hand  which,  v/hen  uplifted, 
represents  the  uplifted  hand  of  the  Saviour  and  the  Redeemer, 
is  upon  your  heads,  and  upon  you  and  your  families.  It  will 
bring  you  domestic  comfort  and  Christian  peace,  purity  and 
joy  upon  your  family  hearth,  temporal  prosperity,  power,  posi- 
tion in  this  land  of  your  adoption.  It  will  bring  to  you  the 
blessing  that  was  promised  of  old  to  the  people  who  never 
changed  their  faith  from  their  God.  It  will  bring  to  you  a 
soothing  comfort  in  tribulation  ;  the  indulgences  of  the  Church 
of  God  at  the  hour  of  your  suffering,  and  at  the  hour  of  your 
death.  It  will  bring  to  you  a  blessing  that  will  come  down  like 
a  stream  of  God  upon  you,  and  rest  with  your  children,  and 
your  children's  children  after  you.  Therefore  I  hope,  that  if 
it  be  my  privilege  in  the  coming  year  once  again  to  address 
you  upon  this  topic,  and  to  enter  upon  this  labor  of  love  for 
you  and  for  me,  that  I  will  find  you  all  here,  your  numbers  in- 
creased and  multiplied,  your  influence  increased  and  multiplied 
and,  perhaps,  I  may  be  able  to  congratulate  you  upon  some 
glorious  news  from  Rome. 

Now,  I  have  spoken  to  you  at  some  length.  If  I  have  inter- 
ested you,  I  know  it  is  the  subject  that  has  interested  you  ;  and 
I  hope  that  subject  has  so  interested  you  that  you  have  not 
been  tired  of  the  time  that  you  have  spent  here  this  evening. 
If,  on  the  other  hand,  I  have  tired  any  one  amongst  you,  made 
you  yawn — I  didn't  see  anybody  yawn — made  you  feel  that  it 
was  high  time  for  me  to  give  up  and  go  to  my  convent  and  say 
my  prayers  and  go  to  bed — I  say  if  I  have  tired  any  one  amongst 
you  to  such  an  extent,  the  only  excuse  I  can  offer  is  that  I  had 
no  intention  to  do  so. 


THE    CATHOLIC    CHURCH   THE 
IMAGE  OF   GOD. 


[Sermon  preached  at  the  laying  of  the  corner-stone  of  the  Church  of  St.  Columba, 
Brighton,  Mass.,  on  Sunday,  Sept.  22,  1872.] 

"  I  have  loved,  O  Lord,  the  beauty  of  Thy  house,  and  the  place  where  Thy  glory 
dwelleth." 

HESE  words  are  found  in  the  Book  of  Psalms.  First 
of  all,  dearly  beloved  brethren,  remember  that  the  man 
who  spoke  those  words  is  declared  in  the  Scriptures  to 
be  "  a  man  after  God's  own  heart."  He  had  his  fail- 
ings, like  other  men.  God  permitted  him  to  fall  into  great  sins  ; 
and  great  was  the  penance  with  which  he  paid  for  his  sins.  But, 
in  spite  of  his  failings,  in  spite  of  his  sins,  he  was  still  declared 
to  be  "  the  man  after  God's  own  heart,"  because  his  zeal  for  the 
house  of  God,  and  for  the  glory  of  the  dwelling-place  of  the 
Lord,  devoured  him.  Why  do  I  say  that  it  was  in  this  especially 
that  the  royal  prophet  was  a  man  after  God's  own  heart  ?  Be- 
cause I  find  that  when  God  Himself  became  man,  the  virtue, 
beyond  all  others,  that  shone  forth  in  Him — flashing  from  Him 
like  the  lightning  of  His  divinity — was  zeal  for  His  Father's 
house,  for  its  beauty  and  its  grandeur.  And  the  only  time 
when  the  angry  God  shone  forth  in  the  person  of  Jesus  Christ — 
the  Redeemer,  the  God  of  mercy — was  when  he  found  them  de- 
filing His  Father's  house,  and  with  His  own  hands  He  scourged 
them  from  the  holy  place.  . 

Observe,  secondly,  beloved  brethren,  that  although  the 
prophet  of  Israel  declared  that  he  loved  the  beauty  of  the  house 
of  the  Lord,  he  spoke  not  of  the  Temple  of  Jerusalem.  It  was 
not  yet  in  existence  ;  not  a  stone  was  yet  laid  upon  a  stone  in 
the  house  which  David's  own  son,  Solomon,  erected.  Therefore. 


348  The.  Catholic  Church  the  Image  of  God. 

when  the  prophet  exclaimed,  "  I  have  loved,  O  Lord,  the  beauty 
of  Thy  house,  and  the  place  where  Thy  glory  dwelleth,"  nothing 
remains  but  to  conclude  that  when  the  prophet  spoke  the 
Almighty  God  had  lifted  up  the  veil  of  the  future,  and  appear- 
ing before  his  prophetic  eye  revealed  to  him  the  glories  of  that 
Church  which  was  to  come,  and  which  was  founded  on  the 
prophets  and  the  apostles,  the  great  corner-stone  being  Jesus 
Christ  Himself;  that  Church  of  which  the  apostle  said  :  "  Christ 
our  Lord  loved  the  Church,  and  gave  Himself  for  it  ;  laid  down 
His  life  for  her,  that  He  might  make  her  in  all  things  perfect 
and  worthy  of  Himself;  without  spot  or  wrinkle;"  but  a 
glorious  Church ;  that  Church  of  which  the  inspired  one  in 
the  Apocalypse  said :  "  Behold  the  Tabernacle  of  God  with 
man.  He  shall  dwell  in  the  midst  of  them.  They  shall  be 
His  people,  and  He  the  Lord  their  God."  What  Church 
is  this  ?  It  is  the  only  and  the  one  Church,  of  which  Christ 
our  Lord,  the  Son  of  God,  is  the  Divine  Architect.  "  Wis- 
dom hath  built  unto  herself  a  house,"  says  the  inspired 
writer,  "  and  carved  out  seven  columns."  Faith  is  to  be  there, 
supporting  the  atrium  over  the  altar  of  God  ;  pru'clence,  justice, 
wisdom,  fortitude,  and  the  inestimable  treasure  of  all  others — 
adorning  and  beautifying  the  dwelling-place  of  God  with  man — 
charity.  Oh  !  it  was  this  beauty  which  captivated  the  heart  of 
Israel's  prophet-king  ;  it  was  this  beauty  which  Christ  Himself 
set  upon  the  brows  of  His  Church,  as  a  crown  of  unfading,  im- 
perishable splendor.  Thus  the  prophet's  eye,  turning  from 
Jerusalem,  and  from  his  home,  entered  into  the  future  of  time, 
and  into  the  designs  of  God,  and  he  exclaims  :  "  Oh  !  how  fair 
are  Thy  tabernacles,  O  Lord  of  Hosts !  I  have  loved  the 
beauty  of  Thy  house,  and  the  place  where  Thy  glory  dwelleth." 
Now,  first  of  all,  my  brethren,  let  me  congratulate  you  that 
you  are  here  to-day.  If  David  was  pronounced  "  a  man  after 
God's  own  heart,"  because  he  was  zealous  for  the  beauty  of  the 
house  of  God,  may  I  ask  you,  my  friends,  what  has  brought  you 
here  to-day  with  love  in  your  hearts  and  eyes,  and  with  gifts  in 
your  hands,  if  not  that  self-same  zeal  and  desire  and  love  for  the 
splendor  and  the  beauty  of  God's  dwelling-house  which  filled 
the  heart  of  the  prophet,  and,  in  spite  of  his  defects  and  his  sins, 
still  made  him  the  man  conformable  to  the  heart  of  God  ?  It  is 
the  sign  of  predestination — the  sign  that  God  intends  and  pro- 


The  Catholic  Church  the  Image  of  God.  349 

poses  to  raise  that  man  to  a  high  place  in  heaven,  and  to  carve 
for  him  a  tabernacle  of  peculiar  glory — when  He  pours  into  a 
man's  heart  on  this  earth  a  lively  and  anxious  zeal  for  the  honor 
and  beauty  of  the  house  of  God. 

Again,  let  us  consider  what  was  that  beauty  which  captivated 
David's  heart.  What  was  that  glory  which  he  was  loving  when 
he  made  that  exclamation  which  I  have  quoted  in  my  text  ? 
Was  it  a  mere  material  beauty  ?  Oh,  no  !  It  was  not  the  beauty 
of  the  material  edifice  only  ;  it  was  the  spiritual,  divine,  heavenly 
beauty  which  he  saw  in  the  Catholic  Church,  in  that  she  is  the 
image  of  God.  You  saw  that  it  was  published  amongst  you 
that  this  was  to  be  the  purport  of  my  salutation  to  you  this 
morning : — "  The  Catholic  Church  is  the  Image  of  God."  There 
are  certain  pretensions  about  this  that  would  be  altogether  blas- 
phemous if  they  were  not  divine.  There  are  certain  words 
which  can  be  uttered  with  truth  only  by  the  lips  of  God ;  and 
upon  any  other  lips  they  are  rank  blasphemy.  Now,  in  the 
world  of  this  our  day — the  intellectual  world,  the  learned  society 
world,  is  stupified  and  amazed  when  the  Catholic  Church  comes 
forward  with  what  to  them  appear  such  outrageous  and  absurd 
pretensions.  She  says :  "I  alone  have  salvation."  Men  say: 
**  She  blasphemes ;  salvation  is  only  from  God."  She  comes  for- 
ward and  says:  "  I  alone,  of  all  human  institutions,  of  all  things 
upon  this  earth,  am  imperishable,  immortal,  and  eternal."  And 
men  cry  out :  "  She  blasphemes — this  Catholic  Church  ;  for  God 
alone  is  imperishable,  immortal,  and  eternal."  Well,  my  friends, 
if  the  Catholic  Church  were  not  the  image  of  God  ;  if  she  were 
not  divine  in  her  origin  ;  if  she  were  not  altogether  supernatu- 
ral in  her  institutions  and  in  her  life,  these  pretensions  would  be 
blasphemy;  these  words  of  hers  would  be  impiety.  So  it  was 
with  her  divine  Founder.  When  He  said :  "  I  am  the  Light 
of  the  world.  Come  to  Me  whilst  the  light  is  shining  amongst 
you  " — that  word  would  be  blasphemy  only  He  was  God  who 
said  it.  When  He  said :  "  Without  Me  ye  can  do  nothing. 
Unless  you  believe  in  Me  you  shall  be  lost  forever,  and  die  in 
your  sins  " — that  word  would  be  blasphemy  only  it  was  the  Son 
of  God  who  spoke  it.  And  when  He  said :  "  You  cannot  de- 
stroy Me.  You  may  destroy  the  temple  of  this  body,  if  I  per- 
mit you  ;  but  in  three  days  I  will  rise  from  the  grave,  imperish- 
able, immortal,  never  to  die  or  see  death  again  " — that  word  would 


350  The  Catholic  Church  the  Image  of  God. 

be  blasphemy,  only  He  who  spoke  it  was  the  Son  of  God.  So 
these  pretensions  of  the  Catholic  Church,  these  words  she  speaks, 
would  be  blasphemy  on  any  other  lips.  They  who  do  not  be- 
lieve in  her  origin  and  her  institution  speak  words  of  human 
wisdom  when  they  say  "  she  blasphemes."  But,  is  she  divine  ? 
does  she  come  from  heaven  ?  does  she  come  to  us  from  God  ? 
does  she  bear  His  image? 

When  we  approach  the  sublime  truth — that  the  Catholic 
Church  is  the  image  of  God — it  is  necessary  for  us  first  to  con- 
template what  God  is,  as  reflected  in  Jesus  Christ,  our  Lord. 
The  apostle,  speaking  of  our  blessed  Saviour,  calls  Him  the 
image  of  God  :  "  Christ  Jesus,  who  is  the  image  of  God — Chris- 
tus,  qui  est  imago  Deiy  If  we  contemplate  our  divine  Redeemer, 
in  the  height  of  heaven,  before  His  Incarnation,  we  behold 
Him  the  image  of  the  Father  who  begot  Him,  the  very  figure 
of  that  Father's  substance  and  the  splendor  of  His  glory ;  we 
behold  Him  equal  to  the  Father  in  nature,  in  eternity,  in  power, 
in  every  attribute  of  God.  For  He  was  the  uncreated  Word  of 
God ;  and,  being  the  Word  of  God,  He  was  in  heaven  the  very 
essence  of  truth.  Being  God — "  true  God  of  true  God,"  He 
was  the  quintessence  of  sanctity;  being  equal  to  the  Father  in 
divine  nature  and  in  essence,  He  was,  like  the  Father,  eternal. 
He  came  down  from  heaven  to  earth — this  infinite,  eternal  God 
— and  became  the  child  of  a  human  mother,  and  took  her 
nature  and  her  flesh,  and  lived  amongst  us.  He  conversed  with 
us  ;  and  He  died  at  our  hands — the  Lord  Jesus  Christ !  Oh,  great 
Son  of  God  !  my  Creator  !  my  Redeemer  !  my  only  Hope  !  give 
me  words  to  sound  Thy  praises  !  He  brought  from  heaven  all 
that  He  was  in  heaven.  He  was  God  in  heaven  ;  he  was  God 
upon  the  earth.  He  was  essential  truth  in  heaven  ;  He  was 
essential  truth  upon  the  earth.  He  was  infinite  sanctity  in 
heaven ;  He  was  infinite  sanctity  upon  the  earth.  He  was,  in 
heaven,  the  principle  of  the  life  that  could  never  die  ;  so,  com- 
ing to  earth,  He  asserted  His  immortality  in  the  glory  of  His 
resurrection  ;  having  passed  through  the  gates  of  death  He 
rose  again,  never  again  to  die.  Thus  do  we  behold  Him — the 
Word  uncreated  in  heaven — the  Word  made  flesh  upon  the 
earth;  but  still  the  same — the  image  of  God. 

Now,  mark,  that,  in  His  coming,  in  the  fulness  of  His  divin- 
ity, in  the  greatness  of  His  truth,  in  the  power  of  His  sanctity, 


The  Catholic  CJmrch  the  Image  of  God.  351 

and  in  the  privilege  of  immortality,  Christ  our  Lord  remedied, 
upon  this  earth,  the  great  evils  of  the  sin  of  man.  God  created 
man  without  sin.  "He  made  him  right,"  says  Ecclesiastes. 
He  created  man  without  sin,  and  conferred  upon  our  first 
parents  four  magnificent  privileges.  The  first  of  these  was  that 
He  gave  to  man  the  enjoyment  of  the  presence  of  God.  Thus 
we  see  that,  before  Adam  fell.  Almighty  God  was  accustomed 
to  come  down  from  heaven  in  some  wonderful,  mysterious  form 
of  rapturous  beauty,  to  appear  before  His  newly-made  creature, 
man,  and  to  converse  with  him  familiarly  as  they  walked 
through  the  shades  and  groves  of  Eden.  Secondly,  He  con- 
ferred upon  unfallen  man  the  light  of  knowledge  and  of  wisdom. 
All  wisdom  He  gave  him — a  comprehensive  intellect,  informed 
by  the  highest  knowledge  of  the  things  of  earth,  but  still  more 
of  the  things  of  heaven.  Thirdly,  He  gave  to  unfallen  man  the 
privilege  of  sanctity  and  purity  of  heart;  bravery;  strength  of 
affections ;  nobility  of  impulses ;  generosity  of  sentiment ;  and 
thus,  also,  He  made  him  the  image  of  God.  Fourthly  and 
lastly,  He  gave  to  man  immortality  that  never  was  to  see  death  ; 
for  man,  once  created,  was  designed,  without  tasting  the  bitter- 
ness of  death,  to  enjoy  the  participation  of  eternity  with  the 
God  that  made  him.  Now,  these  were  the  four  things  which 
God  gave  to  man,  and  in  which  He  made  man,  before  his  sin, 
the  fair  image  of  Himself;  and  these  are  precisely  the  four 
things  which,  lost  to  man  by  the  sin  of  Adam,  are  restored  to 
us  again  by  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  in  His  Incarnation.  First 
of  all,  man  lost  the  presence  of  God.  God  came,  in  an  angry 
moment,  after  his  great  sin.  He  spoke — Ah  !  no  longer  in  the 
sweet  tones  that  were  once  heard,  falling  like  music  on  the  ears 
of  unfallen  man  ;  but,  like  the  voice  of  angry  thunder  muttering 
in  the  sky,  he  heard — "Adam,  where  art  thou?  Come  forth. 
Cursed  art  thou  and  the  earth  in  thy  work  this  day  !  "  Then 
God  departed  into  the  high  heavens ;  and  for  four  thousand 
years  His  voice  was  never  heard  again  upon  the  earth.  Man 
lost  the  gift  of  high  knowledge.  "  Truth  has  diminished 
amongst  the  children  of  men,"  says  the  Psalmist.  And  we 
know  that  one  of  the  terrible  effects  of  sin  was  the  darkening 
of  the  human  nature  and  intellect.  No  longer  was  it  compre- 
hensive, no  longer  intuitive  no  longer  quick  in  its  scientific 
glance.     He  must  nov^  labor — the  student  must  now  labor  all 


352  The  Catholic  Church  the  Image  of  God. 

his  years,  in  trying  to  discover  a  few  natural  or  a  few  super- 
natural truths,  that  he  may  be  saved  ;  because  truth  alone  can 
save  the  soul  of  man.  By  degrees,  in  the  course  of  time,  the 
very  idea  of  God  perished  out  of  the  minds  of  men  ;  and  they 
adored  the  basest  things.  They  deified  their  passions  and  their 
own  vices  ;  and  they  bowed  down  before  them  ;  and  gradually 
they  lost  God.  By  sin,  Adam  not  only  lost  the  presence  and 
knowledge  of  God,  but  he  lost  the  divine  grace  of  God  that  was 
in  his  soul.  No  longer  did  that  soul  look  up,  like  an  unspotted 
mirror,  to  throw  back  in  all  its  clearness  and  freshness  the  outline 
of  the  glorious  figure  of  Almighty  God,  who  stamped  Himself — an 
image  of  Himself — on  the  soul  of  man.  Oh  !  no  ;  but  shattered 
as  into  a  thousand  pieces,  it  broke,  like  a  broken  mirror,  into  a 
thousand  reflections  of  all  things  around — the  reflection  of  sin  and 
of  shame;  the  reflection  of  every  form  of  misery  and  confusion. 
The  image  of  God  was  no  longer  seen  ;  the  likeness  of  God 
■was  no  longer  reflected  in  that  soul  and  face.  His  only 
desire  was  to  take  a  form  of  being,  grovelling  and  seeking 
for  the  things  of  this  earth,  as  if  he  was  created  for  them  ; 
debasing  and  dishonoring  the  soul  that  God  had  made  for 
Himself  in  heaven.  Finally,  by  disobedience  sin  came  into 
this  world  ;  and  by  sin,  death.  Man  lost  his  immortality  ;  he 
was  no  longer  immortal.  Death  came — the  angel  commis- 
sioned by  the  Almighty  God — by  the  word  he  received  from  God, 
which  was :  "  This  race  I  created  having  sinned,  go  thou  in 
amongst  them.  Strike  them  down  of  all  ages.  Let  no  man 
escape — no,  not  even  my  divine  Son  Himself,  when  He  be- 
comes man;  for  it  is  decreed  for  all  men  once  to  die." 
This  is  the  fourth  tremendous  loss. 

Now,  mark  what  Christ  our  Lord  restored.  First  of  all, 
coming.  He  brought  to  us  that  God  who  had  fled,  in  His  anger, 
into  the  recesses  of  His  own  infinite  holiness,  in  order  that  He 
might  not  see  the  crimes  of  men.  He  brought  from  heaven 
with  him,  in  the  hour  of  His  Incarnation,  the  fulness  of  His 
divinity  corporally.  He  brought  with  Him  the  voice  that  spoke 
to  Adam  in  the  groves  of  Eden.  He  brought  with  Him  the 
power  that  created  Adam  from  nothing,  the  sanctity  that  filled 
heaven  and  the  earth.  And  that  voice  of  God  was  heard 
amongst  men — no  longer  as  on  the  summit  of  Sinai,  in  the  roll- 
ing and  sweeping  thunder,  striking  terror  into  every  heart ;  no 


The  Catholic  Church  the  Image  of  God.  353 

longer  as  heard  by  the  prophet  on  the  mountain-top,  preceded 
by  the  earthquake  and  the  storm  of  fire  ;  but  He  came,  the 
Virgin's  Child,  full  of  sweetness ;  and,  as  the  last  word  the 
Father  had  said  in  His  anger  was:  "Cursed  be  the  earth,"  so 
the  first  public  word  that  Jesus  Christ  spoke  was  the  word, 
"Blessed  are  ye,  O  ye  poor,  for  yours  is  the  kingdom  of  heaven." 
He  brought  with  Him,  moreover,  the  knowledge  of  God — the  di- 
vine knowledge  that,  springing  from  heaven  and  from  earth, 
was  a  certain  knowledge,  not  admitting  of  any  doubt,  or  any 
dispute;  coming  home  to  the  intelligence  upon  the  authority  of 
God,  that  cannot  err;  unchanged  and  unchangeable;  that  is, 
never  to  contradict  itself,  never  to  deny  a  single  utterance  ; — 
the  knowledge  supreme,  never  to  permit  of  contradiction,  never 
to  allow  any  form  of  error  to  exist  for  an  instant  in  its  presence. 
Such  was  the  knowledge  He  brought  who  said  to  all  men  :  "  You 
shall  know  the  truth,  and  the  truth  shall  make  you  free."  He 
brought  with  Him  the  sanctity  of  God,  His  own  infinite  sanctity, 
to  pour  out  from  Him,  like  a  mystic  fountain,  "  unto  the  cleans- 
ing of  the  sinner  and  the  unclean."  He  said  to  the  Magdalen 
who  fell  at  His  feet,  "  Arise,  O  woman,  thy  sins  are  forgiven 
thee."  He  imparted  of  His  own  infinite  purity  and  sanctity,  sa 
that  she  arose  at  the  sound  of  His  words  as  pure  as  an  archangel: 
of  God.  He  said  to  the  paralytic  man  :  "  Be  of  good  cheer,  my 
son  ;  thy  sins  are  forgiven  thee  ;  "  and,  at  the  sound  of  His 
voice,  the  cerements  of  sin  burst ;  the  vile  load  of  sin  was  re- 
moved from  him,  and  he  was  in  newness  of  life.  Thus,  we  see 
the  great  truth,  that  when  our  divine  Lord  and  Master  made 
atonement  for  the  sins  of  man  in  general,  upon  the  Cross  of 
Calvary,  paying  the  price  due  for  our  sins,  that  He  went  into 
detail,  teaching,  as  well  as  dealing  with  their  sins,  individually 
and  personally,  unto  their  cleansing  and  absolution. 

Finally,  He  brought  back  to  man  the  immortality  that  man 
had  lost,  not,  indeed,  by  dispensing  with  that  law  of  death  to 
which  He  Himself  conformed,  but  by  lifting  up  our  hopes, 
and  giving  that  immortality  beyond  the  grave,  which  is  the 
inheritance  of  the  true  believer  in  Jesus  Christ.  He  said, 
that  "  He  that  believeth  shall  be  saved.  He  that  believeth  in 
Me,  and  lets  Me  live  in  him,  the  same  will  I  raise  up  at  the 
last  day." 

Now  we  come  to  the   great    question — How  did  Christ    our 

23 


354  The  CatJtolic  Church  the  Image  of  God. 

Lord  perpetuate  all  these  amongst  men  ?  He  came  to  give 
all  these  to  men.  We  know  no  man  can  dispute  it.  If  there 
be  any  here  that  are  not  Catholics,  I  have  not  yet  said  a 
single  word  that  one  of  them  can  contradict.  It  is  common 
to  all  who  believe  in  Christ,  to  say  that  He  was  the  son  of 
God,  and  came  down  from  heaven,  and  brought  the  truth 
and  His  own  sanctity,  and  came,  restoring  to  man  the  immor- 
tality of  everlasting  glory  and  life  eternal  in  heaven.  But 
the  Scriptures  tell  us  of  Christ,  that  what  He  came  to  do 
eighteen  hundred  years  ago,  the  same  He  was  to  continue  unto 
the  end  of  time.  Wherefore  the  apostle  saith  that  "  Jesus 
Christ,  the  anointed  Saviour — the  same  yesterday,  to-day,  and 
forever,  "  is  as  necessary  now,  in  this  nineteenth  century,  as  He 
v/as  in  the  first  century.  He  is  still  the  only  Saviour,  "  the 
only  name  under  heaven  by  which  we  can  be  saved  ;  "  the  only 
source  of  salvation.  He  is  as  necessary  for  us  in  His  presence, 
in  His  truth,  in  His  sanctity,  in  His  immortality,  as  He  was 
unto  the  people  of  Jerusalem  eighteen  hundred  and  seventy 
years  ago.  Did  he  remain?  Of  all  the  most  important  ques- 
tions it  is  the  most  important — Did  he  remain,  or  did  He  leave 
us  as  we  were  before  ?  Did  He,  on  that  day  of  Ascension, 
withdraw  Himself  from  us  so  that  no  man  can  hear  His  voice, 
audible,  as  at  first,  to  us,  in  His  well-known  accents  of  sympa- 
thy for  our  sufferings,  as  we  kneel  down  at  His  feet  to  hear  that 
Saviour's  word?  Did  He  depart,  or  did  He  remain?  He 
Himself  tells  us  emphatically  :  "  I  will  abide  with  you  ;  I  will 
be  with  you  all  days,  unto  the  consummation  of  the  world." 
If  we  ask  Him,  For  what  purpose  ?  He  answers,  and  says  :  "  I 
am  to  be  with  you  in  order  that  My  truth  may  remain  un- 
changed and  unchangeable ;  in  order  that  My  sanctity  may 
remain,  and  My  embodiment,  unto  the  cleansing  of  the  sinner 
and  the  unclean  ;  that  where  sin  abounded  grace  may  still  more 
abound."  Christ  came  down  in  order  that  all  men  may  have 
light,  and  have  it  more  abundantly.  And  so  He  will  remain  ; 
He  will  remain  with  you  all  days  until  the  consummation  of 
the  world.  Lest  men  might  doubt  a  vague  promise  and  think 
that  He  would  remain  only  as  an  influence,  as  a  presiding 
agency  in  a  kind  of  spiritual  communion  by  which  we  were  able, 
on  the  wings  of  prayer,  to  soar  aloft  to  Him — (we  hear  men 
again  and   again  saying  this) — the   Eternal  God,  on  the  night 


TJie  Catholic  CJiurcJi  the  Image  of  God.  355 

before    He  suffered,  took   the  elements  of  life,  bread  and  wine, 
and  by  a  solemn  and  most  explicit  word,  He  changed  the  bread 
and  wine  into  Himself.     Himself:  God  and    Man.      The  Eter- 
nal Father  is  in  the  Son  of  the  Virgin  again — all  that    He  had 
as  God,  all  that  He  had  as  Man  ;  all  that  must  come  from  Him 
by  the  union   of  the  two  natures  in   one    person.     He    said  : 
"  This  is   My  Body ;  this   is  My  Blood  ;  all  that  I  am  ;  all  that 
I  have  been.     Do  ye  this  unto  the  end  of  time."     And :  "  He 
that   eateth   My  flesh   and  drinketh  My  blood   shall   have  life 
eternal ;  and  I  will  raise  him  upon  the  last  day."     He  specified, 
He   defined.    He  localized   His  presence.     No  doubt    or    cavil 
about  it.     Never,  for  fifteen  hundred  years,  did  the  Church  He 
founded  express  a  doubt   as  to  that    presence  ;  but   all  men  be- 
lieving in  the  name  of  Christ,  adored  Him,  present  on  the  altar, 
for   fifteen  hundred  years  ;    until,  three  hundred  years  ago,  a 
man  who  once  himself  adored — a  man  who  had  been  for  years 
a  sacrificing  priest  upon  the  altar — came  and  said  :  "  Christ  is 
not  here  ;  "  and  the  nations  had  the  misfortune  to  believe  him. 
Christ  said   He  would   remain  :  and  He  expressed,  moreover, 
not  only  that  abiding  presence  in  the  Eucharist,  but  also  de- 
clared  He  would  remain  as  a  guiding  influence  in  the  Church, 
which  she  was  ever  ready  to  follow,  and  which  she  never  could 
escape.     He  said  :  "  I  will  build  My  Church  upon  a  rock,  and 
the  gates  of  hell  shall  not  prevail  against  her;   I  will  send  My 
spirit  of  truth  upon  her  to  lead  her  into  all  truth  ;  to  keep  her 
in  the  truth,  and  to  remain  with  her  all  days  unto  the  consumma- 
tion of  the  world."     And  all  this  He  said  before  He  told  them 
to  go  and  teach  the  nations.     Then  He  said  after  this  promise  : 
"  Receive  ye  the  Holy  Ghost,  the  Spirit  of  Truth."     Then  He 
gave  them   His  commission,  "  Go,  teach  all  nations,  baptizing 
them  in  the  name  of  the  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost."  Why  did 
He  give  this  promise  to  them?     Why  did  He  so  emphatically 
teach  the  truth  and  the  fullness  of  truth,  that  He  would  never 
leave  them,  and  that  the  gates  of  hell — that  is,  the  spirit  of  error 
— should  never  prevail  against  them?      Why  did  he  say  this? 
Because  He  knew  well  that  unless  they  were  able  to  connect  this 
commission  with  His  presence  and  His  spirit  and  His  name,  no 
man  of  sense  from  end  to  end  of  the  earth,  would  be  obliged  to 
believe  them.    Not  a  word  !    Peter,  you  may  preach  to  me,  Paul, 
you  may  write  to  me,  Matthew  and  John,  you  may  evangelize 


35^  The  Catholic  Church  the  rmage  of  God. 

me :  I  will  never  believe  one  word  you  say,  Oh !  Peter  and 
Paul — Oh  !  Matthew  and  John,  until  you  first  are  able  to  prove 
to  me  that  the  God  I  adore  is  with  you,  with  His  spirit  of  truth, 
unchanging,  unfailing,  in  the  midst  of  you  forever.  I  cannot 
conceal  my  astonishment,  my  friends,  that  men  bow  down  and 
believe  the  Gospel  ;  believe  its  teachings  ;  and  yet  calmly  declare 
that  there  is  no  infallible  guide  upon  this  earth  to  teach  men  the 
truth.  I  would  rather  live  and  die  an  infidel,  in  honor  of  my 
humanity,  in  honor  of  my  reason.  It  would  be  more  honorable 
in  me,  at  least,  to  live  and  die  an  avowed  infidel  than  to  demean 
my  intelligence,  stultify  my  reason,  and  say  I  believe,  without 
being  able  to  assign  the  infallible  authority  upon  which  it 
comes  to  me.  And  there  is  no  infallible  authority  upon  this 
earth  save  and  except  the  Catholic  Church.  She  comes  with 
her  proof  from  God.  If  she  had  not  that  proof,  her  words 
would  be  rank  blasphemy,  as  her  enemies  assert  that  they  are. 

Thirdly,  He  remains  in  her,  not  only  that  His  truth,  silent, 
bright,  divine,  should  shine  forever  in  the  intelligence  of  man, 
but  also  that  His  divine  grace  might  find  its  way  to  our  souls 
to  cleanse  us  from  our  sins,  and  preserve  us  in  our  purity,  and 
strengthen  us  in  our  weakness,  and  crown  our  virtues  with  the 
Christian  grace  of  final  perseverance  unto  death.  How  did  He 
effect  this  ?  He  said  to  His  apostles  and  to  His  Church  :  "  You 
go  now  to  preach  the  Gospel.  I  have  given  My  power  and  My 
authority  to  you  ;  you  are  to  do  it  in  My  name,  in  My  promised 
presence  ;  for  My  Spirit  is  with  you."  That  is  not  enough. 
"  You  are  going  to  preach  to  sinners,  to  men  who  still  have  their 
weaknesses.  Go  and  preach  not  only  as  a  source  of  illumina- 
tion, but  also  as  a  powerful  remedy  against  their  spiritual  foes, 
and  against  the  power  of  temptation  ;  as  a  cleansing  influence 
upon  the  impurity  of  man's  fallen  nature."  Therefore,  I  say  to 
you :  "  As  the  Father  sent  Me,  so  do  I  send  you  ;  all  power  in 
heaven  and  on  the  earth  is  given  to  Me  by  the  Father ;  I  give 
you  also  all  power  in  heaven  and  upon  earth.  Receive  ye  the 
Holy  Ghost ;  whose  sins  ye  loose  upon  earth  are  loosed  in 
heaven;  whose  sins  ye  retain  on  earth  are  retained  in  heaven  ; 
and  between  Me  and  the  sinner,  stand  in  My  person ;  stand  in 
My  commission,  and  in  My  strength ;  and  say  unto  the  sinner 
unto  the  end  of  time,  what  I  said  to  the  Magdalen :  '  Arise,  go 
in  peace,  thy  sins  are  forgiven  thee.'  "     And  in  this  divine  com- 


TJie  Catholic  Church  the  Image  of  God.  357 

mission  He  sanctioned  His  own  presence  in  the  Church  of  God, 
not  only  as  the  source  of  light,  but  also  as  the  source  of  divine 
cleansing  and  grace.  Therefore  He  said  to  His  apostles:  "You 
are  the  light  of  the  world;  "  but  he  added:  "You  are  the  salt 
of  the  earth." 

Finally,  He  remained  in  His  Church,  conferring  upon  her  not 
only  His  own  divine  presence  on  the  altar  ;  not  only  His  truth 
on  her  lips;  not  only  His  flowing  graces  in  her  hands;  but  He 
remained  with  His  Church,  conferring  upon  her  the  privilege 
and  the  attributes  of  eternity.  The  Church  of  Life  can  never 
di'^ !  Can  never  die  !  Kingdoms  may  break  up  ;  empires  may 
dissolve  ;  systems  of  philosophy  may  crumble  and  fall  to  pieces  ; 
principles,  received  as  the  first  principles  of  science,  may  be  dis- 
proved ;  but  there  is  one  institution,  one  power,  one  system  of 
knowledge,  one  champion  and  teacher  in  the  world  that  can 
never  change  or  die — and  it  is  the  Catholic  Church.  Why?  Be- 
cause Jesus  Christ  founded  it,  and  declared  that  it  should  con- 
tinue unto  the  consummation  of  the  world.  "  The  heavens  shall 
pass  away,  but  My  word  shall  never  pass  away  ;  and  My  word 
is,  that  I  shall  be  with  my  Church  unto  the  consummation  of  the 
world." 

Behold,  dearly  beloved,  the  beauties  that  the  prophet  saw  and 
loved.  He  saw  them  not  in  Jerusalem  ;  the  altar  and  the  Tem- 
ple of  Jerusalem  had  only  the  offering  of  the  "  holocaust  ;  "  the 
whole  burnt  oblation  was  offered,  and  the  blood  of  animals  was 
poured  out  as  a  peace-offering  and  as  a  sin-offering.  The  altar 
of  the  Catholic  Church  immolates  another  victim  ;  perpetuates 
another  and  more  glorious  sacrifice.  God  Himself  is  offered  to 
God.  Christ  once  more  renews,  in  a  different  form,  the  action 
of  Calvary,  unto  the  obtaining  of  all  blessings  and  all  graces  for 
His  people.  David  saw  not  the  beauty  of  the  sanctuary  of 
Jerusalem  ;  for  the  law  made  no  man  perfect  ;  the  sacrifices  of 
the  law  gave  no  man  the  assurance  of  pardon.  But  in  the  Catho- 
lic Church  the  priest,  in  the  tribunal  of  penance,  says :  "  I  ab- 
solve thee,  in  the  name  of  the  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost, 
Not  in  my  name,  not  in  my  person,  but  by  the  power  which 
Christ  has  given  to  me,  I  absolve  thee  ;  "  and  the  penitent, 
sorry  for  his  sin,  knows  that  that  word,  though  it  comes  to  him 
from  the  lips  of  a  priest,  comes  from  Jesus  Christ,  as  if  He  Him- 
self had  spoken  and  breathed  over  him,  as  over  the  Magdalen  in 
the  day  of  her  repentance. 


358  The  Catholic  Church  the  Image  of  God. 

And  now,  my  friends,  not  only  does  the  Church  possess  all 
these  beauties,  as  she  dwells  on  that  spiritual  foundation  which 
Christ  our  Lord  made  for  her,  "  but  she  is  founded  upon  the 
prophets  and  the  apostles,"  says  the  apostle  ;  and  Christ  says  : 
"  I  will  place  thee,  O  Cephas  ;  I  will  make  thee  a  rock,  and  upon 
that  rock  I  will  build  My  Church."  Peter,  indeed,  may  be  the 
foundation-stone,  but  Christ  is  more  so.  And,  just  as  the 
foundation-stone  here  is  imbedded,  and  laid  into  the  strong 
supporting  masonry  under  it,  so  that  it  can  never  move,  never 
sink — no  declining  out  of  a  perfect  rectangle,  on  account  of  the 
solidity  of  the  base  upon  which  it  rests — so  the  Lord  said  to 
Peter:  "Thou  art  a  rock."  He  meant  to  say  Peter  should  be 
the  foundation-stone  ;  but,  still,  the  Lord  Himself,  coming  in 
His  unseen  power  of  truth  and  sanctity,  was  to  be  the  solid  bed 
on  which  Peter  was  to  be  imbedded,  and  on  which  the  Church 
was  to  be  built  up.  I  say,  all  these  duties,  all  these  privileges, 
remain  with  the  Catholic  Church  everywhere.  She  endeavors 
to  bring  them  forwards  always.  Not  only  by  the  voice  of  her 
preachers  ;  not  only  by  the  action  of  the  priests  upon  the  altar 
and  in  the  tribunal  of  penance ;  but  she  brings  them  forward 
and  puts  them  before  the  world,  that  no  man  may  be  ignorant 
of  them.  She  is  constantly  preaching,  and  saying  to  the  na- 
tions: "  I  come  from  God  ;  God  is  with  me  ;  I  am  the  truth,  be- 
cause God  is  with  me ;  and  God  has  His  Israel.  I  am  able  to 
purify,  because  I  have  the  pure,  divine  grace,  which  is  instru- 
mental in  conferring  immortality.  I,  alone,  am  immortal." 
She  not  only  preaches  this,  in  order  that  all  men  may  know  it 
and  be  saved,  but  she  endeavors  to  embody  all  this  beauty  she 
proclaims,  even  in  her  material  buildings.  Every  stone  in  the 
sacred  house  of  God  ;  every  rock  that  is  imbedded  here,  has,  in 
the  perfection  and  in  the  symmetry  still  of  its  beauty,  a  living 
sermon,  telling  the  people,  "  Here  is  the  house  of  God ;  the 
tabernacle  of  God  with  men  ;  here  is  the  home  of  truth,  where 
no  man  can  ever  hear  error ;  here  is  the  fountain  of  sanctity, 
welling  forth  unto  the  cleansing  of  the  unclean  sinner ;  here  is 
life  for  the  dead  ;  here  is  the  Lord  of  the  resurrection,  Jesus 
Christ." 

■*  You  are  come  together  here  to-day  to  lay  that  foundation- 
stone  and  rock  with  joy,  and  full  of  zeal  for  the  house  of  God  ; 
full  of  hope  that  some  day  there  your  eyes  may  feast  while  they 


The  Catholic  Church  the  Image  of  God.  359 

feed  upon  its  consummate  beauty.  Upon  this  I  congratulate 
you.  But  think  how  great  is  the  task  and  noble  work  that  God 
has  given  you  to  perform.  When  David  was  making  prepara- 
tions for  the  building  of  the  Temple  of  Jerusalem,  he  said  : 
*'  The  work  indeed  is  great,  for  it  is  no  house  for  man,  but  for 
God."  If  he  said  that,  how  much  more  truly  may  you  say  it  ? 
First  of  all,  the  Catholic  Church  has  compressed,  as  it  were,  all 
her  privileges  in  these  walls ;  the  mystery  of  the  Incarnation  is 
perpetuated  within  these  walls.  Yes,  yes !  the  walls  and  the 
altar  will  stand  here,  and  the  tabernacle  will  be  reared,  and  be- 
neath the  cross,  within  its  golden  gates,  here  to  linger,  God,  the 
Eternal  God,  will  dwell  as  really,  and  truly,  and  substantially 
as  He  dwells  upon  the  Father's  right  hand,  in  His  glory  in 
heaven.  Not  a  house  for  man,  but  for  God  ;  not  a  house  for 
prayer  only,  but  for  the  presence  of  God  ;  not  a  house  for  sanc- 
tification  only,  but  for  God,  the  author  of  sanctity.  Here  will 
He  dwell,  because  we  listen  and  hear,  "  Behold  the  Tabernacle 
of  God  with  men  !  He  shall  be  in  the  midst  of  them  ;  they 
shall  be  His  people  ;  He  shall  be  their  God."  Oh  !  what  can  I 
say  of  this  Divine  Presence  hovering  over  that  altar,  divinely 
invoked  by  the  voice  of  the  priest ;  hovering  while  God  moves 
the  hearers,  and  shakes  the  hills  and  the  mountains  to  their 
bases.  "  The  mountains,"  saith  the  prophet,  "shall  bow  down, 
and  the  hills  be  shaken  before  the  glory  of  thy  eternity."  At 
the  voice  of  the  priest  sounding  upon  this  altar  all  heaven  will 
be  in  commotion  ;  the  Eternal  God  will  rise  upon  His  throne, 
and  with  the  swiftness  of  thought  take  His  way  to  earth  on  the 
wings  of  His  own  divine  promise  to  be  on  her  altar  personally. 
Every  angel  and  archangel  will  start  on  his  throne  to  give  glory 
or  accompany  in  adoration,  and  veneration,  and  love.  No  day 
without  the  beauty  of  His  presence.  Here  will  He  remain,  that 
the  afflicted  may  be  consoled  in  body  and  mind  ;  that  the  peni- 
tent may  be  absolved  by  Him  ;  that  the  young  child  may  re- 
ceive at  his  baptism  life  through  Him  ;  that  the  aged  and  dying 
may  receive  their  last  strength  and  food  from  Him.  Here  will 
He  remain,  even  when  you  are  thoughtless  and  forgetful  of 
Him,  ever  living  to  make  intercession,  and  to  scatter  His  graces. 
This  neighborhood  was  yesterday  like  any  other  place  of 
man's  dwelling.  The  sanctity  of  the  domestic  home  was  here ; 
the  joy  of  the  family  was  here;  the  energy  of  the  enlightened 


360  The  Catholic  Church  the  Image  of  God, 

and  energetic  people  was  here ;  the  administration  of  human 
law,  admirably  carried  out,  was  here.  But  when  this  church  is 
built,  and  this  altar  is  erected,  I  shall  be  able  to  add,  that  the 
Eternal  God  is  here.  As  different,  therefore,  as  heaven  is  from 
earth,  must  this  place  be  from  the  moment  you  have  built  your 
Father's  house,  and  raised  up  a  tabernacle  and  altar  for  Jesus 
Christ,  As  different  as  a  throne  in  heaven  is  from  the  lowliest 
place  of  earth,  when  this  place  shall  be  honored,  and  God 
comes  and  takes  His  dwelling  amongst  you. 

How  will  the  Church  proclaim  His  presence?  Oh,  my  friends, 
by  the  solemn  and  distinctive  beauty  of  its  architecture.  The 
most  casual  observer,  the  most  ordinary  passer-by  will  look 
upon  the  dwellings  of  men,  and  say,  there  dwells  a  man  of  dis- 
tinction. He  will  say,  that  is  a  hall  of  justice,  or  of  legislation. 
He  will  say  again,  there  dwells  a  counsellor  of  men ;  and  the 
moment  he  comes  within  sight  of  these  Gothic  walls,  he  will  see 
the  cruciform  building  and  pointed  arch  ;  in  the  window  a  paint- 
ing of  heaven  ;  the  tower  resting  upon  its  massive  buttresses, 
lifting  to  the  clouds  the  sign,  the  mystic  sign  of  the  cross.  The 
moment  he  sees  this,  he  stands  and  says :  "  There  dwells  God." 
The  truth  of  the  Church  will  be  upon  its  summit,  for  its  steeple 
will  bear  the  sign  of  the  cross,  the  sign  of  the  unfailing  truth  of 
God.  Within  these  walls  the  Word  that  will  be  preached  unto 
the  end  of  time  will  be  not  the  word  of  man  but  of  God.  I  may 
not  come  inhere  to-day,  and  preach  the  word  of  man.  I  may 
not  give  you  my  own  word.  I  may  not  give  you  my  own  opin- 
ions. I  am  responsible  to  the  Church,  represented  here,  to  the 
Church  of  God.  I  am  responsible  for  every  single  word  that 
falls  from  my  lips  ;  because  she  will  permit  me  only  to  preach 
as  long  as  I  preach  the  truth  of  Jesus  Christ,  received  from  Him. 
What  follows  from  this?  If  you  were  not  Catholics,  if  you  were 
of  any  other  form  of  religion,  I  might  try  to  use  whatever  pow- 
ers of  persuasion  God  has  given  me,  to  lead  you  into  my  opin- 
ions and  form  of  belief.  I  might  propound  to  you  the  falsest 
principles  of  so-called  philosophy,  and  surround  it  with  such 
beauty  of  imagery  and  language,  as  to  make  you  believe  it,  and 
so  might  exercise  over  you  the  greatest  tyranny  that  one  man 
can  exercise  over  another.  But  you  are  saved  from  that.  If, 
on  this  platform,  on  this  matter,  I  should  utter  a  single  word 
which  the  Church  of  God  doth  not  teach,  there  is  not  a  man 


The  Catholic  Church  the  Image  of  God.  361 

here  amongst  you  who  would  not  say,  "Out  with  him.  He  is 
a  heretic.  He  no  longer  teaches  the  Word  of  God."  In  the 
Catholic  Church,  therefore,  you  are  freed  from  my  persuasive- 
ness and  from  any  powers  that  I  might  exercise  over  you. 
Now,  in  the  Church's  freedom  you  stand,  for  He  said  :  "You 
shall  know  the  truth,  and  the  truth  shall  make  you  free."  That 
truth  shall  resound  within  these  walls,  not- by  our  words,  but  by 
the  word  that  comes  from  the  mouth  of  God.  God  selected  as 
the  place  for  His  nativity  "  the  house  of  bread  " — Bethlehem, 
the  house  of  bread ;  and  the  bread  sent  down  from  heaven, 
which  the  angels  eat,  shall  be  in  this  house,  where  that  very 
bread  shall  be  broken.  "  Not  in  bread  alone  doth  man  live, 
but  in  every  word  that  proceedeth   from   the  mouth  of  God." 

More  than  this.  The  Church  will  represent  to  you,  even  in 
this  material  form,  the  sanctity  of  God.  Everything  about  it 
speaks  to  you  of  Christ,  and  of  Him  alone.  Everything — un- 
derstand me  well.  This  will  be  the  house  of  Jesus  Christ,  and 
of  Him  alone.  You  may  see  the  Virgin  Mother  painted  upon 
the  wall,  or  standing,  in  the  beauty  of  statuary,  within  a  niche. 
She  will  speak  to  you  of  her  Divine  Son,  and  of  Him  alone. 
Why  is  she  there  ?  Because  she  had  the  honor  of  being  the 
Mother  of  Jesus  Christ — the  King.  You  will  see  the  confes- 
sionals in  their  place  ;  they  will  speak  to  you  of  Him,  and  of 
Him  alone.  The  priest  enters  into  them  in  the  presence  of  His 
Lord  and  of  his  Master.  All  tends  to  one  point — that  you  may 
be  worthy  to  receive  Jesus  Christ.  The  baptismal  font  in  the 
baptistery  will  speak  to  you  of  Him,  and  of  Him  alone.  There 
you  will  see  the  child  of  sin,  the  child  of  earth,  the  child  of  the 
curse,  the  inheritor  of  the  fallen  nature,  submitted  to  the  sacra- 
ment— the  sprinkling  of  a  few  drops  of  water,  and  the  words  of 
the  Son  of  God.  That  child  is  now  the  brother  of  Jesus  Christ. 
Above  all,  everything  in  the  Catholic  Church,  from  the  moment 
you  cross  the  threshold,  subserves  to  bring  the  thought,  and  the 
mind,  and  the  eye  to  one  spot,  and  before  that  one  spot  hangs 
a  silvery  lamp ;  gleaming  in  its  living  flame,  it  teaches  that  life 
is  there.  For  it  is  not  death,  but  life  is  there.  "In  Him  was 
life,  and  the  life  was  the  light  of  man."  Every  window,  every 
stone,  every  statue  in  its  niche,  every  painting  on  the  wall — ■ 
all  will  seem  to  point  to  the  altar.  Every  face  turns  to  the 
altar,  so  that  the  moment  you  cross  the  threshold  of  the  door, 


362  The  Catholic  Church  the  Image  of  God. 

the  first  thing  that  will  strike  you  will  be  the  altar,  with  the 
golden  gates  of  the  tabernacle,  and  behind  those  doors  our 
God,  the  Lord,  the  patient,  long-suffering,  forgiving,  omnipo- 
tent, glorious  Lord,  all  merciful.  Again,  behind  those  doors, 
Jesus  Christ  will  stand  and  wait  for  you. 

Finally,  this  church,  which  you  are  about  to  build,  will  also 
proclaim  the  immortality  of  the  Catholic  Church.  My  friends, 
you  may  ask  yourselves,  as  you  look  at  these  walls  to-day, 
"Why  are  they  so  solidly  built?  why  are  rocks  of  tons  in 
weight  put  into  them?  why,  in  the  depth  of  their  foundation, 
in  the  lordly  way  are  they  pushing  out  their  buttresses,  taking 
and  seizing  on  the  soil,  as  if  they  were  fortresses  we  build — 
places  of  defense  for  cannon  to  be  mounted  upon  ?  "  I  answer, 
the  Catholic  Church  cannot  afford  to  build  a  light,  perishable 
edifice  ;  because  the  Catholic  Church,  when  she  builds,  builds 
for  all  time.  Not  for  to-day,  nor  for  a  year,  nor  for  twenty 
years.  She  sets  no  date  over  her  door  ;  does  not  put  up  the 
day  when  the  church  was  built ;  but  proclaims  by  lier  solidity 
that  she  was  built  for  ever.  This  has  ever  been  the  thought 
of  the  Catholic  Church — the  voiceless  sermon  her  marble  tem- 
ples have  ever  preached  in  the  lands  more  ancient  than  your 
own.  Cross  the  seas,  take  shipping  at  any  of  your  ports,  and 
the  first  land  that  will  meet  your  eye  as  you  bend  your  prow 
towards  the  East — the  rising  sun — the  first  land  that  will  meet 
your  eye  is  the  green  mound  of  Erin,  as  it  springs  like  an  emer- 
ald out  of  the  Western  Ocean.  Set  your  foot  upon  that  sainted 
island  of  Ireland,  and,  with  reverence,  kneel  and  kiss  the  sacred 
soil  of  the  isle  which  has  been  for  fifteen  hundred  years  the 
home  and  the  mother  of  saints.  It  is  wet  with  the  martyr's 
blood  ;  it  is  sacred  for  the  hero's  undying  valor  ;  it  is  blessed  by 
God  with  a  spirit  which  no  power  of  earth  or  hell  could  ever 
break.  It  has  been  the  land  whence  went  forth  the  missiona- 
ries who  converted  more  than  half  the  world.  Ask  for  its  his- 
tory, and  behold  the  group  of  the  seven  churches  ;  behold  the 
ruins  of  the  ancient  abbeys  and  monasteries.  The  storms  of  a 
thousand  years  have  swept  over  them  ;  the  snows  of  fifteen 
hundred  winters  have  fallen  upon  them  ;  the  fire  of  the  wrath 
of  man  has  desolated  them;  every  destroying  influence  has 
swept  over  them.  And  yet  they  stand,  flinging  their  ruined 
heads  towards  heaven,  proclaiming  to  the  world  that  Ireland's 


Tlic  CatJiolic  Church  tJu  Image  of  God.  363 

Church  was  immortal  and  imperishable  ;  that  men  might  despoil 
her,  but  could  never  destroy  her;  because  the  men  who  built 
those  churches,  those  abbeys,  raising  aloft  their  venerable  tow- 
ers, built  not  for  time,  but  for  ever — as  you  are  building  to- 
day. 

Nothing  remains  for  me  but  to  encourage  you  in  the  glorious 
work  you  have  begun.  Your  pastor,  my  friends,  has  under- 
taken ,  a  heavy  duty,  which  indeed  it  is  in  every  land,  but 
more  especially  in  this  young  land  of  America.  Yet,  the  great 
virtue  is  hope  in  the  great  time  of  the  future,  as  in  the 
past.  It  is,  I  say,  in  this  land  the  principal  care,  and  the  weary- 
ing anxiety  of  the  priest,  to  have  the  responsibility  of  the  debts 
which  he  incurs  in  building  the  temple  of  God.  He  stands  be- 
fore you  a  solitary  man  ;  he  has  undertaken  a  building  that  will 
cost  thousands  and  thousands.  Is  the  money  in  his  purse  ?  No  ! 
The  Catholic  Church,  to-day,  more  than  for  many  years,  has  in- 
herited, in  all  its  fullness,  the  prerogative  of  apostolic  poverty, 
because  the  nations  of  the  earth  have  plundered  us  of  whatever 
little  we  have  had.  If  it  is  a  blessing  to  be  poor,  most  certainly 
the  Catholic  priest  of  to-day  can  claim  that  blessing.  Spain, 
Italy,  France,  Germany,  Sweden,  England,  all  the  nations, 
whatever  else  they  have  neglected,  have  not  neglected  to  plunder 
and  to  impoverish  the  Catholic  Church  and  her  priesthood. 
With  not  a  penny  in  his  purse  he  stands  before  you.  I  give 
him  encouragement.  I  give  him  the  ineffable  promise  which 
comes  as  surely  as  these  deep  foundations  bespeak  a  tabernacle 
which  will  be  in  some  degree  worthy  of  the  dwelling  of  God. 
Ah  !  he  laid  the  foundations,  not  so  truly  in  the  material  soil,  as, 
trusting  in  the  future,  he  laid  them  in  his  faith  in  your  charity, 
in  your  munificence  and  zeal  towards  the  building  of  a  house  of 
God.  He  trusted  to  your  faith,  to  your  hope,  to  your  love; 
and  well  he  has  reason  to  trust.  He  has  reason  to  be  grateful, 
and  he  is  grateful,  for  the  generosity  even  of  those  who  are  not 
Catholics,  but  who,  in  this  liberal,  high-minded,  enlightened 
neighborhood,  acting  in  a  spirit  of  true  liberality,  have  con- 
tributed their  means,  largely  and  munificently,  to  enable  the 
priest  to  make  his  work  perfect.  For  they  know  well  how  much 
a  beautiful  Catholic  church  contributes  to  the  respectability  and 
prosperity  of  a  city,  or  town,  or  neighborhood.  They  know 
well  that  it  is  "  a  thing  of  beauty,  and  a  joy  forever."     And,  in 


364  The  Catholic  Church  the  Image  of  God. 

their  artistic  zeal,  if  not  from  higher  motives,  they  also  have 
contributed  to  this  work  ;  and  to  them  I  am  bound  to  express 
the  heartfelt  gratitude  of  the  Catholic  pastor. 

You,  my  friends,  have  contributed  fiom  two  motives.  First 
of  all,  because  your  faith  teaches  you  that  the  highest  privilege 
that  God  can  confer  upon  man  in  this  world  is  to  give  him  the 
honor  and  glory  of  building  a  house  for  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son 
of  God.  David,  the  man  after  God's  own  heart,  was  not  found 
worthy  to  do  this,  because  of  his  sins.  The  grace  which  was 
denied  David  has  been  conferred  upon  you,  and  the  Son  of  God 
says :  "  Give  me  a  house,  give  me  a  place  in  the  land  with  you  ; 
in  order  that  I  may  build  a  place  in  heaven  for  your  everlasting 
glory."  You  hear  more  !  The  only  thing  that  our  Lord  com- 
plained of,  of  all  that  he  suffered  upon  earth,  was  that  they  refused 
Him  a  house.  They  robbed  Him  of  His  good  name.  He  com- 
plained not;  they  tore  His  garments  to  tatters,  He  complained 
not ;  they  scourged  Him  at  the  pillar,  He  complained  not ;  they 
crucified  Him  upon  the  cross,  no  word  of  complaint,  but  only  a 
word  of  prayer  for  forgiveness,  fell  from  His  lips.  There  was 
only  one  thing  of  which  He  complained,  when  He  said:  "  The 
birds  have  their  nests,  and  the  foxes  have  their  holes,  but 
the  Son  of  Man  has  nowhere  to  lay  His  head."  He  was 
refused  a  house  in  Bethlehem,  in  Jerusalem,  and  even  when 
dead  upon  the  cross,  it  was  the  charity  of  one  man  that  opened 
another  man's  grave  to  let  Him  rest  there,  even  for  the  three 
days  of  His  death.  The  Catholic  Church,  with  tenderest  love, 
has  always  endeavored  to  wipe  out  that  reproach.  Therefore, 
as  Catholics,  the  priest  trusts  to  your  zeal. 

He  also  trusts  to  your  zeal,  your  co-operation,  as  Irishmen. 
What  shall  I  say  now  .'*  I  will  only  say  this  :  If  you  carefully 
study  the  history  of  your  race,  or  the  history  of  the  men  whose 
blood  is  in  your  Irish  veins,  you  will  find  that,  amongst  the 
nations  of  the  earth,  the  Irish  people  were  at  all  times  the  great- 
est church  builders.  In  their  excessive  zeal  for  the  house  of 
God  they  built  them  seven  in  a  group.  The  crosses  of  their 
churches  cover  all  Ireland.  Every  art  that  arose  in  architecture 
they  seized  upon,  and  embodied  on  their  native  soil  in  some 
form  of  beauty ;  until  the  antiquarian  traveler  to-day  stands 
oppressed  with  beauty,  as  he  sees  the  ruins  on  the  Rock  of 
Cashel,  or  the  beautiful   ruins  of  Mellifont,  or  Monasterboyce. 


The  Catholic  Church  the  Image  of  God.  365 

Even  in  the  days  of  penal  law,  of  oppression,  they  still  went  on, 
and  as  soon  as  one  church  was  destroyed  another  sprung  up  ; 
and  when  the  Almighty  God  lifted  off  from  the  nation  the  chains 
of  her   slavery  ;  when   the   mightiest  of  Ireland's  sons,  heroic 
O'Connell,  struck,  with  a  giant   blow,  the   fetters,  and  they  fell 
from  his  mother's  arms,  the  first  thing  the  Irish  people  did  was 
to  cover  the  whole  land  with  the  most  magnificent  churches  on 
the  face  of  the  earth.     That  zeal  falls   to   us  by  tradition  ;  it  is 
in  our  nature.     We  cannot  help  it.     We   must  do  it ;  it  is  our 
destiny ;  a  glorious  destiny.     It  is  one  of  the  signs   of  our  na- 
tional tradition.     Hence,  in  the  nation's  migration  to  America, 
with  all  their  faults,  with  all   their  defects,   every  one  brought 
with  him  the  grand  national  traditional  energy  which  has  covered 
America  with  Catholic  churches.     What  they  are  doing  every- 
where, from  the  instinct  of  their  national  character  and  tradi- 
tion, you  will  do  here.    He  saw  that  which  would  rise  here,  who 
laid  the  foundations  of  his  church  not  only  in  the  material  soil, 
but  in  your  faith,  in  your  zeal,  and  in  his  trust  in  your  traditional 
character  as  Irishmen,  and   as  a  race.     It  will  never  come  to 
pass  that  any  one  will  have  cause  to   remark :  "  See  ;  here  is  a 
man  who  began,  and  could  not  finish."     Never,  for  he  did  not 
found  this  church  upon  the  sand  ;  he  laid  his  foundations  upon 
the  Rock   of  the  Catholic  Church,  and   the   firm  rock  of  Irish 
love,  and  Irish  fidelity,  and  Irish  generosity,  and  Irish  spirit  and 
manhood.     Upon  these  has  he  founded,  and  no  man  will  ever 
point  up  and  say  that  he  ever  mistook  his  men,  or  laid  a  false 
foundation  for  his  people.     It  may  be  given  to  me,  my  friends, 
at  some  speedy  future  time,  not,  indeed,  to  tire  you  as  to-day, 
but  to  come  here  and  offer  up  my  prayers  and  thanksgiving  in 
the  church  which  your  generosity  and  your  zeal  shall  construct, 
and  to  praise  with  you  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  in  this  the  house 
of  His  dwelling.     Thus,  then,  we  may  look  forward,  with  con- 
fidence, to  that  hour  of  our  judgment,  when    the  question  will 
be,  between  you  and  me  and  our  God,  Are  we  to  be  admitted  or 
excluded   from    His  kingdom  ?  for,  surely,  the    God    who    says 
"  that  any  who  gives  a  cup  of  cold  water  to  one  of  these  little 
ones,  shall  receive  a  reward,"  will  not  refuse  His  house  in  heaven 
to  the  zealous  hearts  and  loving  hands  who  have  built  Him  up 
a  beautiful  mansion  upon  the  earth  for  His  dwelling. 


THE  HARMONY  OF   THE  WORSHIP 
OF  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH. 


[Lecture  delivered  in  the  Music  Hall,  Boston,  Mass.,  September  25,  1872.] 

ADIES  AND  Gentlemen  : — I  have  first  to  crave  an  act 
of  indulgence  on  your  part,  namely,  that  you  will  per- 
mit me  to  change  the  subject  of  the  lecture.  After  the 
very  heavy  labor  of  last  Sunday,  my  voice  is  scarcely 
harmonious  enough  to  speak  to  you  this  evening  on  such  a  sub- 
ject as  the  music  of  Ireland.  If  the  music  of  Ireland  were  a 
grating,  hoarse,  inharmonious  sound,  I  might  then  venture  to 
touch  on  it,  even  with  my  hoarse  voice.  If,  for  instance,  I  had 
to  speak  to  you  of  some  music  that  is  performed  upon  the  Scotch 
bagpipe,  I  dare  say  I  should  find  voice  enough  for  it.  But,  in- 
asmuch as  the  subject  would  involve  the  bringing  out,  as  far  as 
the  voice  of  man  can,  the  thrilling  echoes  of  the  sweetest  harp 
that  ever  resounded  upon  this  earth,  I  am  not  equal  this  evening 
to  the  task.  Yet  that  which  I  propose  to  you  in  its  stead  I  con- 
sider far  more  important  and  still  as  musical.  I  will  ask  you  to 
reflect  with  me  upon  The  Harmony  of  the  Worship  of  the 
Catholic  Church. 

First  of  all,  my  friends,  let  me  remind  you  that  I  am  not 
come  here  this  evening  to  weary  your  minds  with  the  language 
of  controversy.  Controversy  may  be  very  good  in  its  way. 
Personally,  I  do  not  believe  in  it.  I  will  spare  you  the  language 
of  controversy,  because  I  am  not  come  here  this  evening  to 
speak  to  you  of  the  truth  of  the  Catholic  worship,  but  only  of 
the  harmony  of  Catholic  worship.  Nor  am  I  come  to  speak  to 
you  of  the  beauty  of  Catholic  worship,  though  I  believe  that 
there  is  nothing  under  heaven  more  beautiful  than  the  liturgy  of 


Harmony  of  tJic   Worship  of  the  Catholic  Church.     367 

the  Catholic  Church.  I  want  to  speak  to  you  of  the  harmony  of 
its  worship  ;  and,  in  order  to  explain  my  meaning,  you  will  allow 
me  to  tell  you  a  little  story,  I  need  not  remind  many  amongst 
you  of  the  sorrowful  years  which  I  myself  had  the  agony  to  wit- 
ness, when  the  angel  of  God's  sentence  spread  his  wings  over 
my  native  land,  and  cast  the  shadow  of  death  upon  her  people ; 
when  the  children  of  Irish  parents  cried  to  heaven  for  bread, 
and  there  was  no  hand  to  break  that  bread  for  them.  Now,  in 
those  sad  and  terrible  years,  a  great  effort  was  made  to  perform 
a  miracle  that  has  been  tried  for  ages,  and  has  never  yet  been 
accomplished,  namely,  to  make  Ireland  turn  Protestant.  Some 
of  our  poor  people,  without  employment,  without  food, — but 
very  few  in  number — had  the  weakness  to  yield,  and,  for  the 
sustenance  of  to-day,  to  barter  and  to  give  up  what  they  knew 
to  be  the  true  religion.  Indeed,  we  have  heard  of  one  of  those 
who  changed  his  religion,  but  did  not  change  his  faith.  A  zeal- 
ous Anglican  clergyman  in  the  neighborhood  came  to  him,  and 
asked  him,  as  he  was  starving  and  had  nothing  to  live  upon,  was 
it  not  better  for  him  to  become  a  Protestant.  He  would  then 
find  work;  he  would  find  clothing;  he  would  find  food.  So  the 
man  took  thought  and  made  the  bargain.  He  was  to  get  so 
much  a  week.  He  was  to  get  nominal  employment  and  good 
wages.  He  stipulated  for  a  new  suit  of  clothes ;  and  he  was 
particularly  anxious  to  get  a  new  hat.  "  Your  honor,"  said  he, 
"no  matter  how  well  I  am  dressed,  if  I  keep  my  old  caiibeen  on, 
they  will  never  think  I  am  a  Protestant.  But  if  they  see  a  new 
hat  on  me,  they  will  know  that  I  have  '  turned.'  "  Accordingly, 
he  was  arrayed  in  his  new  clothes,  and  had  his  new  hat  on  him. 
He  perched  it  very  knowingly  over  his  right  eye,  and  he  drove 
off  with  the  Protestant  clergyman  in  his  buggy.  Early  on  Sun- 
day, they  passed  near  to  the  Catholic  Church.  All  the  neighbors 
were  there.  "  Hold  a  minute,"  said  he,  "  I  will  be  with  you  in 
a  minute."  The  moment  the  neighbors  saw  him  they  said ; 
"  Oh,  Jimmy,  is  that  you  that  got  out  of  that  carriage !  Are 
you  going  from  your  church  ?  "  "  Whisht,  your  soul,"  said  Jim- 
my, "  whisht,  I  could  not  help  it.  Make  way  till  I  get  a  place  for 
my  hat,"  and  he  turned  around  to  the  chapel  door,  and  knelt 
and  blessed  himself:  "  Good-bye  to  you  now,  God  Almighty. 
'Tis  going  I  am,  and  I  can't  help  it.  Be  easy  on  me,  and  don't 
take  a  short  turn  on  me  while  I  am  away,  and  I  promise  you," 


368  The  Harmony  of  the   Worship 

said  he,  "  that  when  you  send  back  the  potatoes  to  the  country, 
I  will  come  back  to  you  again." 

Well,  my  friends,  I  met  once  one  of  these  unfortunate  men, 
who  came  to  me  and  put  himself  into  my  hands,  truly  repentant, 
and  sincerely  sorrowful  for  what  he  had  done,  and  I  had  the 
pleasure  to  receive  him  back  into  the  Church.  Now,  I  asked 
that  man  a  question  which  may  be  interesting  to  you,  as  it  was 
to  me.  I  said  to  him,  "  Tell  me  this :  you  were  two  years 
amongst  them?"  "I  was,  your  reverence,  God  bless  you." 
"  Now,  what  sort  of  feeling  had  you  ; — what  impression  did  the 
Protestant  religion  make  upon  you  ?  "  "  Well,  your  reverence,  I 
felt  like  as  if  it  were  not  natural  like.  I  went  in  of  a  Christmas 
morning ;  there  was  a  sermon.  I  went  in  on  Good  Friday  ;  and 
there  was  a  sermon.  I  went  in  on  Easter  Sunday ;  and  there  was 
a  sermon  ;  and  there  was  no  difference  at  all  between  one  day  and 
another ;  and  I  felt,  even  if  it  were  a  true  religion,  as  if  it  were 
not  natural,  as  if  it  would  not  help  a  man."  Now,  that  explains 
the  meaning  of  what  I  am  about  to  say  to  you.  There  was  a 
man  who  had  his  natural  cravings  ;  there  was  a  man  who  had  his 
natural  feelings  ;  and  he  could  find  nothing  harmonious  with 
these  cravings  and  feelings  the  moment  he  went  out  of  the 
Catholic  Church.  I  am  not  speaking  of  the  truth  or  falsity  of 
this  religion  or  that.  Here  was  a  man  who  confessed  that  this 
religion,  which  he  embraced,  did  not  come  home  to  him — was 
not  natural  to  him — that  he  had  a  thousand  feelings  which 
could  not  find  vent  out  of  the  Catholic  Church.  Here  it  is  that 
the  charm  of  the  Catholic  Church  comes  in  ;  that  its  religion, 
certainly  bears  with  it  in  its  worship  certain  agencies  and  ap- 
pliances which  fully  harmonize  with  the  natural  wants  and  in- 
clinations of  the  soul  of  man. 

I  invite  your  consideration  to  four  great  points  of  Catholic 
worship.  These  four  I  select  amongst  many,  because  they  are 
the  four  that  are  most  known  outside  of  the  Church,  and  are 
controverted.  These  are  :  first,  the  Blessed  Eucharist ;  Jesus 
Christ  present  upon  the  Catholic  altar ;  secondly,  the  Con- 
fessional, and  the  same  Lord  administered  in  the  Sacrament  of 
Penance ;  thirdly,  the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary,  the  place  that  she 
holds  in  Catholic  worship ;  and,  fourthly,  the  Liturgy  of  the 
Catholic  Church  in  its  round  of  feast  and  fast — in  its  expres- 
sions of  joy  and  of  sorrow.      Let  us  consider  these  four  briefly. 


of  the  Catholic   Church.  369 

I  shall  endeavor  to  do  it  in  a  manner  that  will  interest  you  as 
much  as  possible,  and  yet  to  prove  home  to  every  mind  of  those 
whom  I  have  the  honor  to  address  how  completely  the  Cath- 
olic worship  harmonizes  with  our  nature,  and  with  our  spiritual 
wants. 

First  of  all,  then,  the  presence  of  God  in  the  Holy  Sacrament 
of  the  Eucharist. 

You  are  all  aware — at  least  all  Catholics  amongst  my  audience 
— and  I  believe,  also,  if  there  be  any  who  are  not  Catholics,  that 
they  are  also  aware  of  it — that  the  Catholic  Church  has  taught 
from  the  day  that  she  stood,  the  first  Easter  morning,  by  the 
empty  tomb,  and  heard  the  angel's  voice  say  to  her:  "Why 
seek  ye  the  living  among  the  dead  ?  " — from  the  day  when  Peter 
preached  his  first  sermon,  on  Pentecost  morning,  down  to  this 
hour,  the  Catholic  Church  has  taught,  and  must  teach  to  the 
end  of  time,  that  the  Son  of  God  is  really,  truly,  substantially, 
and  personally  present  upon  her  altars,  under  the  hidden  form 
of  the  Eucharistic  elements,  the  bread  and  wine.  But,  as  I  said 
before,  I  do  not  mean  to  enter  upon  the  proofs  of  this  presence. 
This  is  not  the  time,  nor  the  place  to  do  it.  I  simply  assert 
the  doctrine ;  and  then  I  ask  you  to  look  at  it  from  this  stand- 
point ;  how  it  harmonizes  with  the  designs  of  God  and  with  the 
natural  wants  of  man. 

My  friends,  there  are  two  kinds  of  virtue.  There  is  a  virtue 
that  makes  a  man  honest,  straightforward,  truthful,  humble,  pru- 
dent, temperate  ;  that  makes  him  a  good,  intelligent  husband, 
a  kind  and  loving  father,  a  faithful  friend.  And  this  class  of 
virtue  is  called  moral  virtue.  It  makes  a  man  all  that  he  is  ex- 
pected to  be  in  his  relations  to  his  wife  and  his  children  and  his 
family  ;  in  his  relations  to  his  fellow-men,  and  the  society  in 
which  he  lives  and  moves.  These  moral  virtues  are  beautiful. 
They  are  also  necessary.  The  well-being  of  society  depends 
upon  them.  What  would  we  be  if  we  could  not  trust  each 
other's  word  ?  What  would  society  be  if  commercial,  interna- 
tional, political  honesty,  were  utterly  destroyed,  as  it  promises^ 
fair  to  be,  in  this  our  day?  What  would  we  be  if  there  were  no 
temperance  amongst  us,  and  if  our  people  were  all  self-indulgent 
in  that  basest  of  all  forms  of  crime — the  greatest  dishonor  to 
God  and  degradation  to  man — in  the  crime  of  drunkenness  ? 
There  would  be  an  end  to  all  society.     Therefore,  these  virtues 

24 


370  The  Harmony  of  the   Worship 

that  make  man  fit  to  play  his  part  in  the  world,  and  fulfill  the 
duties  of  his  state  here,  are  necessary  and  beautiful,  and  the 
welfare  of  the  world  depends  upon  them.  But  they  are  not, 
after  all,  the  highest  virtues.  There  are  other  virtues  that  re- 
gard Almighty  God  directly  and  personally,  and  these  are  the 
highest  of  all,  because  the  object  of  them  is  the  highest — God, 
the  Almighty  and  Eternal.  These  are  virtues  without  which, 
no  matter  how  fitted  a  man  may  be  for  earth,  he  never  can  be 
made  fit  for  heaven  ;  and  these  are  the  virtues  of  Faith,  Hope, 
and  Charity.  In  the  designs  of  God,  the  sanctification  of  man 
and  the  salvation  of  man's  soul,  depend  upon  the  exercise  of 
these  three  virtues.  It  is  easily  seen.  God  Himself  tells  us 
that  "  Without  faith  it  is  impossible  to  please  God."  And  else- 
where. He  says,  "  Ye  are  saved  by  hope."  Elsewhere,  again,  it 
is  written :  "  If  I  have  possession  of  all  things  and  have  not 
charity,  it  profiteth  me  nothing."  Therefore  says  St.  Paul: 
"  Now,  there  remain,  brethren,  Faith,  Hope,  and  Charity,  these 
three."  They  are  the  Christian's  inheritance,  as  distinguished 
from  the  mere  man  of  the  world.  They  are  the  supernatural 
and  divine  grounds  of  that  fair  edifice  which  is  based  upon  and 
built  up  with  all  other  moral  virtues  which  are  so  necessary  for 
the  welfare  of  man  and  of  society.  And  faith  is  absolutely  ne- 
cessary, hope  is  absolutely  necessary,  and  charity  is  indispensa- 
ble, in  order  that  man  may  be  a  citizen  of  heaven  as  well  as  a 
citizen  of  earth. 

Now,  my  friends,  reflect  that  these  three  virtues  regard  Al- 
mighty God  Himself  directly.  Faith  may  be  defined  to  be  the 
virtue  of  the  intellect  in  man,  catching  sight  of  God  through  the 
medium  of  revealed  truth.  Hope  is  the  virtue  of  the  heart  or 
will  of  man,  straining  after  that  God  whom  he  sees  by  the  light 
of  faith.  Charity,  the  greatest  of  all,  is  the  virtue  which  clutches 
Him,  and  makes  Him  our  own,  so  that  we  clasp  Him  to  our 
bosom,  and  are  united  to  Him  by  love.  From  the  beginning 
these  three  virtues  were  necessary  to  man,  and  it  is  through 
these  three  that  his  way  to  the  Almighty  God  lies.  Therefore, 
we  find  God  commanding  the  people  in  the  Old  Testament,  and 
telling  them,  that  they  must  have  faith  and  hope  and  love.  By 
the  mouth  of  His  prophet  He  said:  "  For  all  those  who  wish  to 
approach  to  God,  it  is  necessary,  first,  to  believe  in  Him,  then  to 
hope  in  Him,  and  then  to  love  Him."     But  it  is  a  remarkable 


of  the  Catholic  Church.  371 

and  significant  fact,  that  amongst  the  Hebrew  people,  as  their 
history  comes  down  to  us  in  the  Bible,  which  you  all  read — that 
they  were  constantly  failing  in  the  exercise  of  these  three 
virtues  ;  constantly  falling  from  their  faith,  and  into  every 
form  of  idolatry  that  lay  around  them  ;  now  bending  the  knee 
to  the  god  of  the  Moabites ;  now  worshiping  Dagon,  the  god  of 
the  Philistines  ;  now  bending  down,  in  the  vilest  of  all  idolatrous 
passions,  to  the  base  and  inhuman  altars  of  Moloch.  And  so 
they  went  into  the  ways  of  the  nations,  God  constantly  humilia- 
ting them  ;  now  handing  them  over  to  their  enemies  on  one 
hand  ;  now,  on  the  other  ;  constantly  sending  His  prophets  to 
them,  and  saying,  "  O,  Israel,  turn  to  the  Lord,  and  abandon 
your  idols !  "  Still,  with  all  their  admonitions,  and  all  their 
warnings,  we  find  these  Jewish  people  constantly  falling  into 
idolatry,  and  transferring  their  hope  in  their  own  true  God  to 
every  idol  that  was  lifted  up  before  them  ;  forgetting  their  God 
completely,  and  breaking  every  sacred  and  golden  bond  of  divine 
love.  Let  me  ask  you,  did  you  ever  consider  why  the  Jewish  peo- 
ple found  the  exercise  of  faith,  hope,  and  love,  so  difficult  to  them? 
Oh,  it  was,  my  dear  friends,  because  the  object  of  these  three 
virtues  was  so  far  removed  from  them.  He  left  the  earth  in  the 
day  of  His  anger;  and  as  the  figure  of  the  Almighty  God 
retreated  from  before  the  eyes  of  the  first  sinner  straining  after 
Him — whilst  the  tears  of  his  first  sorrow  were  upon  that  first 
sinner's  face,  he  heard  from  the  God  who  was  leaving  him,  a  sol- 
emn voice,  like  thunder  in  his  ears  :  "  Cursed,  O  sinner,  is  the 
earth,  in  thy  work,  this  day."  Then  God  retreated  into  light  in- 
accessible, and  men  saw  him  no  more.  They  heard  no  more  the 
voice  that  fell  like  the  music  of  ten  thousand  harps  upon  the 
heart  of  man;  and  His  voice,  when  it  was  heard,  was  heard  like 
ten  thousand  thunders  upon  the  mountain-top  ;  was  heard 
amidst  the  pealing  of  the  storm  and  the  flashing  of  angry 
lightnings  as  Israel  heard  it  around  Mount  Sinai,  and  the  people 
fell  almost  dead  with  terror. 

The  Hebrew  man,  before  he  could  make  his  act  of  faith,  and 
hope,  and  love,  had  to  find  the  object  of  that  act ;  had  to  soar 
in  thought  and  in  imagination,  painfully  and  laboriously,  from 
out  of  the  sounds  and  the  sights  of  earth  ;  had  to  lift  his  soul 
aloft  ;  and  it  was  only  when  he  reached  the  threshold  of  God's 
own  imperial  kingdom,  then,  and  only  then,  could  he  make  his 


3/2  The  Harmony  of  the   Worship 

act  of  hope  and  faith.  God  saw  this,  and,  filled  with  divine 
compassion,  He  arose  from  His  throne  ;  He  opened  the  gates 
of  heaven  ;  He  bowed  down  the  everlasting  clouds,  pregnant 
with  the  honey  of  His  mercy ;  and  He  came  from  heaven  to 
earth  into  Mary's  bosom,  and  He  became  the  Son  of  a  woman. 
And,  now,  in  Jesus  Christ,  God  met  man  ;  and  we  have  in  the 
midst  of  us  the  object  of  our  faith,  the  subject  of  our  hope,  and 
the  centre  of  our  love.  No  longer  was  it  necessary  for  man  to 
soar  aloft  to  heaven.  Heaven  had  come  down  upon  the  earth  ; 
and  the  voice  of  man  was  heard  upon  the  mountain-top,  saying: 
"Blessed  are  ye,  O  ye  poor,  for  yours  is  the  kingdom  of 
heaven  ;  and  ye  again  are  the  sons  of  God."  No  longer  is  it 
necessary  to  seek  God  amid  the  thousand  clouds  of  error  that 
obscure  the  intelligence  of  man  ;  He  comes.  He  comes !  He 
speaks  in  plain  language ;  His  voice  falls  like  music  upon  the 
ear  of  the  broken-hearted  and  afflicted;  His  hand  wipes  away 
the  tear  from  the  widow's  eye  ;  His  voice  resounds  through  the 
darkness  of  the  tomb,  and  the  man  who  is  lying  dead  in  his 
grave  arises  and  comes  forth,  obedient  to  the  voice  of  God.  He 
comes !  Now,  indeed,  every  man  may  have  faith ;  for  faith 
means  the  realizing  of  God  ;  and  God  is  here  ;  hidden,  to  be 
sure,  under  human  form,  but  present.  "Who  do  men  say  that 
I  am  ?  "  He  said  to  His  apostles.  They  answered  and  said  : 
"Master,  some  say  that  Thou  art  a  prophet;  some  say  that 
thou  art  Elias,  or  Jeremiah,  or  John  the  Baptist."  "  But  who," 
said  the  Saviour,  "  do  ye  say  that  I  am?"  speaking  to  the  men 
who  were  familiar  with  Him  every  day  of  His  life:  "  Who  do 
you  say  that  I  am  ?  "  Then  Peter,  advancing  from  the  midst  of 
the  apostles,  knelt  and  said ;  "  Thou  art  the  Christ,  the  Son  of 
the  living  God."  It  Avas  easy  for  thee,  Simon,  son  of  Jonah,  to 
make  that  noble  act  of  faith,  for  God  was  so  near  to  thee ;  it 
was  easy  for  thee  to  clasp  Him  to  thee.  He  was  so  near  thee. 
Men  could  take  the  hand  of  God  in  theirs  ;  men  could  look  into 
the  eyes  of  God ;  men  could  sit  down  at  the  feet  of  God,  and 
hear  His  voice,  until  divine  light  flooded  the  darkness  of  their 
souls.  Thus  God,  in  the  Incarnation,  made  the  exercise  of  faith 
and  hope  and  love  easy  to  man.  The  exercise  of  faith  was  easy, 
for  God  was  so  near.  The  exercise  of  hope,  which  is  based  upon 
divine  promise,  was  easy,  for  God  Himself  was  making  with  His 
own  lips  these  promises  which  fell  upon   human  ears,  and  He 


of  the  Catholic  Church.  373 

was  Himself  pledging  His  divine  assistance  to  their  fulfillment. 
The  exercise  of  love  was  easy  for  men.  Oh,  Catholics,  if  any 
man  among  you  had  lived  with  Him;  if  you  had  seen  that  gentle 
heart  ;  if  you  had  seen  that  benign  action  ;  if  you  had  seen  that 
manifestation  of  mercy  to  every  form  of  affliction,  who  is  there 
amongst  you  that  could  withhold  himself  from  loving  the  great, 
the  royal,  and  the  manly  heart  of  Jesus  Christ? 

Now,  mark  this  design  of  God.  One  of  the  first,  one  of  the 
most  essential,  one  of  the  broadest  facts  of  the  Incarnation,  of 
the  work  of  man's  redemption,  was,  that  it  brought  God  in  the 
midst  of  His  creatures,  and  made  the  exercise  of  these  three 
virtues  so  easy  But  He  only  remained  thirty-three  years.  Then 
they  crucified  Him.  He  went  down  into  the  darkness  of  the 
grave.  He  burst  the  cerements  of  the  grave  upon  Easter  morn- 
ing, and  came  forth  in  the  brightness  of  the  glory  of  the  resur- 
rection ;  and,  after  forty  days  of  glorified  existence  amongst 
them,  He  lifted  Himself  up,  by  His  own  power,  into  the  highest 
heaven,  and  men  beheld  His  face  no  longer.  Did  He  withdraw 
Himself?  Did  He  utterly  withdraw  from  the  midst  of  us?  Oh, 
my  friends,  if  so,  then  the  exercise  of  faith  and  hope  and  love 
becomes  as  difficult  to  us,  once  more,  as  it  was  to  the  Jews  of 
old ;  and  by  what  are  we  better  than  the  people  of  the  old  dis- 
pensation? If  our  God  has  withdrawn  Himself,  and  if,  to  be- 
hold Him  by  faith,  to  strain  for  Him  by  hope,  to  grasp  Him 
by  love,  it  be  as  necessary  to  us  as  to  the  Jews  of  old  to  mount, 
in  spirit,  to  the  highest  heaven,  then  we  cannot  meet  our  God. 
Did  God,  the  Almighty  God,  do  this  ?  I  say  that  He  did  not. 
I  say,  that  if  there  be  one  truth  more  forcibly  and  frequently 
asserted  in  Scripture  than  any  other,  it  is,  that  Christ  our  Lord, 
having  come  down  from  heaven  to  save  men,  was  determined 
never  to  leave  this  earth  until  the  last  day  of  the  world's  ex- 
istence. I  say,  that  He  Himself  declared  expressly,  that  He 
would  remain,  and  not  depart.  "I  am  come,"  said  He,  "to 
you  ;  I  will  not  leave  you  orphans.  I  will  come  to  you  again ; 
and  I  will  remain  with  you  all  days,  unto  the  consummation 
of  the  world."  Elsewhere  He  adds,  "  Behold,  I  am  with  you." 
And  St,  Paul,  in  speaking  of  Him,  said  :  '*  Jesus  Christ,  yester- 
day, to-day,  and  the  same  forever."  Yesterday,  in  the  halls  of 
Judea  ;  to-day  upon  the  altars  of  the  Catholic  Church  ;  and  the 
same  forever.  For,  from  that  Church,  He  solemnly  declared, 
upon  the  word  of  God,  that  He  never  should  depart. 


374  The  Harmony  of  the  Worship 

How,  then,  my  friends,  do  you  harmonize  these  views  of  God 
with  the  actual  state  of  things  in  the  Church?  Did  He  promise 
to  remain  only  as  a  guiding  influence  ?  He  promised  to  remain 
as  a  guiding  influence  when  He  said,  "  My  Spirit  is  with  you. 
My  Spirit  shall  not  depart  from  you.  I  will  remain  with  My 
Church  ;  and  the  gates  of  hell  shall  never  prevail  against  her." 
Here  He  declared  that  He  would  remain  as  an  abiding  and 
a  guiding  spirit  in  His  Church.  But  He  did  more  than  this. 
Lest  any  man  might  be  unaware  of  His  existence  in  the  Church, 
lest  any  man  might  say,  "  He  promised  to  remain,  and  yet 
where  shall  I  find  Him?"  He  actually  located,  or  localized 
Himself,  and  established  His  presence  in  the  infallible  sign 
of  the  species  that  remain  when  the  substance  is  gone. 
He  took  bread  and  wine,  and  said :  "  This  is  My  Body ; 
this  is  My  Blood."  It  is  not  for  me — for  you  or  for 
me — it  is  not  for  me,  O  Christ !  to  demand  why  You  were 
pleased  to  take  this  disguise  or  that.  If  it  pleased  Him  to  take 
the  sand  of  the  desert ;  if  it  pleased  Him  to  take  a  blade  of 
grass,  or  a  branch  of  a  living  tree,  and  holding  it  up  before  me, 
say:  "I  am  here;  this  is  Myself" — then,  before  that  visible 
sign  I  would  bow  down  ;  for  I  am  prepared  to  adore  my  God, 
I  care  not  what  disguise  He  takes.  He  took,  as  He  lay  hidden 
in  the  womb,  the  fullness  of  His  divinity ;  and,  in  the  appearance 
of  the  little  child  at  Bethlehem  ;  in  the  appearance  of  the  grow- 
ing boy  at  Nazareth ;  in  the  appearance  of  the  man  teaching  in 
the  temple  at  Jerusalem  ;  under  the  appearance  of  the  criminal 
crucified  upon  Mount  Calvary — God  was  there  ;  God  was  there 
in  all  the  fullness  of  His  divinity.  Disguise  Him  as  you  will, 
Jesus  Christ  was  still  there  ;  and  Peter,  when  he  adored  Him 
as  the  Son  of  God,  adored  what  his  eyes  had  not  seen ;  for  the 
eye  of  the  flesh  saw  but  the  manhood  of  our  Lord  ;  and  he 
adored  the  Godhead  in  the  man.  Disguise  Him  as  you  will, 
it  is  enough  for  me  to  know  that  He  said  :  "  I  am  here  in  all 
the  fullness  of  My  divinity;  in  all  the  integrity  of  My  human 
nature  ;  in  the  graces  that  flow  from  these  two,  as  the  Redeemer 
and  Saviour  of  the  world ; "  and  the  Catholic  Church,  for 
eighteen  hundred  and  seventy-two  years  has  bowed  down  and 
worshiped  and  adored. 

Now  mark,  my  friends,  that  in  order  to  exercise  the  virtue 
of  faith  two  things  are  necessary :  God  must  be  there ;  for  if 


of  the  Catholic  Church.  375 

God  is  not  there,  there  can  be  no  faith ;  for  faith  is  the  effort  to 
realize  God.  But  God  must  be  there  hidden  ;  not  visible  to 
the  eye,  not  palpable  to  the  senses ;  for  if  He  make  Himself 
visible  to  the  eye,  and  palpable  to  the  senses,  as  He  is  visible 
to  the  glorified  in  heaven,  there  can  be  no  faith  ;  for  faith  is  the 
argument  of  those  who  have  not  seen ;  and  Christ  said : 
"  Blessed  are  those  who  believe  and  have  not  seen."  God  must 
be  present,  and  He  must  be  present  not  seen.  Behold  the 
wonderful  harmony  of  the  Catholic  worship  of  the  Eucharist  in 
bringing  this  out !  The  humblest  Catholic  child,  the  poorest  and 
most  illiterate  person  in  the  Catholic  Church,  if  they  want  to 
realize  God,  know  where  they  can  find  Him.  They  have  only 
to  turn  into  the  nearest  Catholic  Church,  and  go  to  the  altar ; 
and  there  they  meet  God  ;  and  it  is  an  act  as  heroic  as  that  for 
which  Peter  was  beatified  by  his  divine  Master. 

Again,  the  virtue  of  hope  involves  two  things.  It  involves, 
my  dear  friends,  a  distinct  promise  from  the  Almighty  of  some- 
thing in  the  future.  Now,  if  God  had  never  said  a  word  to  us 
about  our  future — if  He  had  never  told  us  what  He  intended 
to  do  for  us — there  could  be  no  hope  for  us,  for  what  rould  we 
hope  for?  A  man  does  not  hope  for  a  thing  that  he  does  not 
know  anything  about.  The  very  first  element  of  hope  is  to 
know  what  you  are  hoping  for.  But  God  has  spoken  and  said 
that  the  future  of  man,  in  the  design  and  intention  of  God,  is  a 
glorious  resurrection  and  an  immortality  in  heaven  of  everKst- 
ing  bliss  and  glory.  This  is  our  future.  To  this  all  things 
tend,  God  has  said :  "  O  son  of  man,  I  intend  that,  when  you 
have  passed  through  time,  you  shall  enter  into  an  eternity  of 
life  and  happiness — into  My  Kingdom  of  heaven."  The  first 
thing  that  is  necessary  for  our  hope  is,  that  God  should  have 
revealed  to  us  upon  what  condition  and  by  what  means  we  can 
make  that  promise  our  own.  It  is  not  an  absolute  promise,  my 
friends  ;  God  has  placed  some  conditions  upon  it.  What  are 
they  ?  They  are  all  bound  up  with  the  Blessed  Eucharist. 
God  says:  "  O  man,  thy  hope  is  the  glory  of  a  happy  resurrec- 
tion ;  and  this  I  say  to  you,  that  unless  you  eat  the  flesh  of  the 
Son  of  Man,  and  drink  of  His  blood,  you  shall  not  have  life  in 
you."  "  He  that  eateth  My  flesh  and  drinketh  My  blood, 
abideth  in  Me ;  and  I  will  raise  him  up  at  the  last  day." 
We  look  for  heaven.     God  has  promised  it.     He  has  promised 


37^  The  Harmony  of  the  Worship 

it  upon  that  condition.  And  where  is  this  condition  fulfilled 
and  verified  ?  Where  are  we  to  find  Him  who  has  said  :  "  Un- 
less you  eat  My  flesh  and  drink  My  blood  you  can  never  rise  to 
glory ;  but,  if  you  do  it,  I  will  raise  you  up  ?  "  Where,  but  in 
the  Blessed  Eucharist  of  the  Catholic  Church  ?  He  only  can 
hope  who  is  able  to  come,  with  a  pure  conscience  and  loving 
heart,  and  receive  into  his  human  bosom  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ 
that  saved  him. 

Finally,  beloved,  how  this  mystery  of  the  Eucharist  harmon- 
izes with  God's  demand  of  love.  It  was  really  hard  to  love 
God  amidst  all  the  counter  attractions  of  this  world.  It  was 
not  so  easy  to  love  Him,  there  were  so  many  passions  boiling 
up  in  the  uneasy  heart  of  man  ;  there  were  so  many  rude  incli- 
nations swaying  him  hither  and  thither,  because  of  his  fallen, 
degraded  nature  ;  there  were  so  many  forms  of  created  beauty 
passing  before  his  senses,  and  before  his  eye,  and  before  his  im- 
agination. For  nearly  four  thousand  years,  the  poet  was  led 
by  his  own  visions  and  wrapped  in  all  their  beauty  and  glory. 
The  painter  and  the  sculptor  were  transported,  in  their  love  of 
art,  to  forgetfulness  of  God  in  their  representations  of  beauty. 
And  the  people  were  carried  away  by  their  own  bad  passions, 
until  the  nations  deified  their  own  vices,  and  adored  their  own 
degradation,  and  called  it  God.  But  now,  God  comes  down 
from  heaven,  because  He  knows  that  nothing  is  so  necessary  to 
make  a  man  love  you  as  to  come  and  be  near  to  him,  and  let 
him  see  you.  Nothing  is  more  natural  than  that  a  friend  should 
like  to  see  his  friend.  And,  therefore,  He  came  down  from 
heaven,  took  a  human  form,  placed  Himself  among  sensible 
objects  upon  earth,  took  His  stand,  as  it  were,  among  the 
people  of  this  world,  that  men  might  love  him.  And,  in  the 
Incarnation,  perpetuated  in  the  Eucharist,  the  Son  of  God — 
Christ,  the  gentle,  the  holy,  the  Almighty,  Christ,  the  model 
man — stands  forth  and  says  to  every  Christian  soul :  "  I  came 
down  from  heaven  incarnate,  for  thy  love.  I  felt  lonely  in  the 
midst  of  My  everlasting  light,  because  thy  love  was  not  there. 
I  felt  uneasy,  enthroned  amongst  My  angels,  because  I  saw  not 
thy  heart  amongst  them  ;  I  am  come  down  from  heaven  to 
earth  to  secure  thy  heart,  and  to  say :  Oh  !  son  of  man,  is  there 
one  so  ungrateful,  so  narrow-minded  among  you,  as  to  refuse 
to  yield  to  Me  the  tribute  of  your  love  ?  " 


of  the  Catholic  Church.  '^yj 

Thus  do  we  behold,  in  the  Eucharist,  the  virtues  of  faith, 
hope,  and  charity — those  necessary  virtues,  those  first  elements 
of  the  love  of  God  ;  the  requirements  of  our  nature  are  har- 
moniously fulfilled  ;  and  we  come  to  our  altars,  and  there  we 
find  the  object  of  our  faith — a  hidden  God  ;  the  subject  of  our 
hope  ;  the  condition  to  which  the  promise  is  attached  ;  the 
centre  of  our  love — because  love,  infinite  and  worthy  of  God,  is 
the  only  motive  that  keeps  Him  upon  the  altar. 

Behold,  also,  how  this  bond  of  Catholic  worship  harmonizes 
with  the  cravings  of  man.  What  is  more  natural — independent 
of  revelation  altogether — what  is  more  natural  than  that  man 
should  seek  his  God  ?  God  has  stamped  it  upon  saint  and 
sinner  alike.  No  matter  how  keen  the  pleasures  of  the  world  ; 
no  matter  how  joyous  the  cup  of  life  may  be  ;  no  matter  how 
bright  the  promise  of  youth,  how  serene  the  mature  pleasures 
of  the  man  of  old  age — there  is,  in  the  heart  of  the  worldling 
and  the  sinner,  as  well  as  of  the  saint,  one  secret  chamber  which 
God  alone  can  enter  and  fill.  Hence  it  is,  that  he  who  had 
tasted  all  pleasures,  St.  Augustine,  exclaimed :  "  Thou  hast 
made  me,  O  God,  for  Thyself;  and  my  heart  was  uneasy  within 
me  until  it  found  its  rest  in  Thee!  "  What  says  another — the 
greatest  man  of  our  age,  a  man  upon  whom  God  had  showered 
every  human  gift — the  poet  Byron?  He  sought  to  feed  his 
hungry  soul  upon  every  pleasure  of  sense  ;  and,  when  he  was 
thirty  years  of  age,  he  sat  down  to  write,  and  this  is  what  he 
wrote : 

"  My  days  are  in  the  yellow  leaf ; 

The  fruit,  the  flower  of  life  are  gone  ; 
The  worm,  the  canker,  and  the  grief 
Are  mine  alone." 

And  why?  Because  God  was  not  there.  Oh  !  my  friends,  in 
Catholic  worship,  the  little  child,  the  full-grown  man,  the  aged 
woman,  the  sick,  the  strong,  the  weak — all  alike — all  know  that 
they  have  only  to  go  into  the  church  to  find  their  God ;  to  give 
vent  to  that  mighty  craving  of  the  heart  of  man ;  to  receive 
that  ineffable  consolation  that  the  prophet  of  old  thanked  God 
for,  when  he  said  :  "  I  have  spoken,  and  my  God  has  heard  my 
voice."  It  would  be  vain  for  us  to  seek  comfort  if  we  did  not 
know  that  God  was  near  to  hear  our  voice.  It  would  be  vain 
for  us  to  look  forward  to  the  promise,  if  we  did  not  know  that 


3/8  The  Harmony  of  the   Worship 

God  was  there — the  necessary  condition  for  its  fulfiUment.  It 
would  be  vain  for  me  to  seek  the  love  of  my  God,  if  I  could  not 
find  Him,  somewhere  or  other,  near  me ;  because  it  is  the 
nature  of  man  to  love  that  which  is  near  him.  And  thus  do  we 
behold  how  this  august  and  tremendous  mystery  harmonizes 
not  only  with  the  designs  and  the  requirements  of  God,  but 
also  with  every  better  craving  and  every  higher  want  of  the 
nature  of  man.  May  we  not,  therefore,  say  with  reason,  that, 
in  the  day  when  Luther  and  his  fellow-laborers  denied  the 
presence  of  Christ,  and  taught  the  people  that  that  which  Christ 
said  was  not  to  be  so  interpreted,  the  nations  suffered  an  irre- 
parable misfortune.  Christ  said  :  "This  is  My  body;  "  Luther 
said  :  "  This  is  not :  " — you  can  choose  which  of  the  two  spoke 
the  truth — but  in  the  day  when  Luther  got  the  nations  to  be- 
lieve him,  he  deprived  mankind  of  a  very  great  consolation  ;  he 
left  the  heart  of  man  void  ;  he  flung  back  Christianity,  as  far  as 
his  action  prevailed,  two  thousand  years  into  the  realms  of 
ancient  Judaism.  He  left  the  Christian  altar  worse  than  the 
altar  of  Jerusalem ;  for  man  had  no  longer  the  comfort  nor  the 
help  of  a  visible  sacrifice. 

Now,  come  to  the  second  great  feature  of  Catholic  worship — 
the  Confessional.  Some  years  ago,  a  man  wrote  a  book  in  Eng- 
land, and  he  called  it  "  The  Confessional  Unmasked."  He  was 
a  dirty,  filthy  fellow ;  a  fellow  who,  in  all  probability,  had  never 
been  to  confession ;  and  he  put  in  all  the  dirt  and  the  filth  that 
could  pass  out  of  his  filthy  mind  ;  and  it  was  passed  off  as  "  The 
Confessional  Unmasked."  Let  me  unmask  the  Confessional  to 
you.  I  will  not  speak  to  you  of  the  divine  side  of  this  argu- 
ment. I  will  not  say  a  word  to  you  of  the  proof  that  Christ, 
having  exercised  the  divine  right  and  the  power  to  forgive  sin, 
left  that  power  to  man.  It  is  not  to  prove  this  that  I  came  here, 
but  only  to  show  that,  in  the  Catholic  Church,  the  confessional 
harmonizes  with  the  cravings  and  the  wants  of  our  nature.  Tell 
me,  do  you  not  all  know  that  it  is  very  hard  to  pass  through 
life  without  committing  some  mistakes?  and  sometimes,  in  the 
thoughtlessness  of  youth  or  the  heat  of  passion,  we  are  liable  to 
commit  very  great  mistakes,  to  say  and  do  things  the  very  re- 
membrance of  which,  years  afterwards,  brings  the  blush  to  the 
cheek,  and  draws  the  tear  to  our  eye.  Now,  do  you  not  know, 
my  friends,  that  there  is  nothing  more  painful  nor  more  difficult 


of  the  Catholic  Church.  379 

to  man,  than  to  keep,  locked  up  in  his  own  heart,  some  secret 
or  other  that  is  worrying  him  and  weighing  him  down  ;  to  walk 
about  with  that  skeleton  in  the  closet  of  his  soul — with  that 
accusing  voice  ever  crying  out :  "  You  have  done  it,"  and  recall- 
ing all  the  circumstances,  with  the  halls  of  memory  thronging 
with  the  foul  recollections,  and  the  accusing  remembrances  of 
these  past  errors  of  our  youth  and  of  our  thoughtlessness,  glar- 
ing upon  us  with  infernal  eyes  that  will  never  close,  to  rest  or 
let  us  rest  ;  speaking  to  us  and  resounding  in  our  hearts  in  the 
darkness  of  the  night  with  a  voice  that  will  not  be  quieted ; 
gnawing  at  our  hearts  like  the  worm  that  can  never  die  ?  Oh, 
how  sad,  how  painful  it  is  for  a  man  to  carry  such  secrets  as 
these  to  the  grave  with  him  !  Do  we  not  know  what  violent 
efforts  men  make  sometimes  to  throw  it  off?  Some  years  ago, 
a  murder  was  committed  in  Ireland.  They  made  all  sorts  of 
efforts  and  could  not  find  out  the  man.  But  after  a  few  years  a 
haggard,  heart-broken  man  came  and  presented  himself  to  the 
authorities,  and  said :  "  I  am  the  man  that  committed  the  mur- 
der in  such  a  place,"  They  were  thunderstruck,  and  asked  him 
what  could  make  him  come  forward  and  accuse  himself;  and  he 
answered  :  "  I  have  borne  this  secret  with  me  for  years  ;  it  has 
ruined  my  health,  and  it  has  broken  my  heart ;  and  it  has  driven 
me  to  this,  that  I  shall  feel  more  light-hearted  on  the  scaffold, 
with  a  rope  around  my  neck,  than  walking  around  among  my 
fellow-men,  with  the  cry  of  blood  ringing  in  my  heart."  He 
could  not  keep  the  secret.  Do  not  we  know  the  common  say- 
ing that  when  a  woman  has  a  secret  troubling  her  she  is  "  like  a 
hen  on  a  hot  griddle,"  until  she  goes  out  and  finds  some  one  of 
the  neighbors  that  will  sit  down  with  her,  perhaps,  over  a  cup 
of  tea ;  and  then,  out  it  will  come. 

My  friends,  let  me  remind  you  that  I  am  only  speaking  of 
the  human,  natural  side  of  this  argument  of  the  Church's  wor- 
ship. Now,  I  ask  you,  was  it  not  God  that  made  us  as  we  are  ? 
Was  it  not  God  that  gave  us  that  sensitiveness,  that  a  secret 
locked  up  in  the  man's  heart  may  go  far  to  kill  him  unless  he  finds 
some  friend  to  whom  he  can  give  it — unless  he  can  find  some  man 
that  can  lighten  his  sorrow  and  the  burden  of  his  soul,  as  Simon 
of  Cyrene  lifted  the  cross  from  the  shoulders  of  our  Lord.  But 
the  difficulty  that  men  find  is  twofold.  First  of  all,  one  is,  if 
you  have  any  thought  that  is  fretting  you  in  secret — that  is 


380  The  Harmony  of  the   Worship 

worrying  you — anything  that  you  feel  in  the  dark  about — you  will 
be  anxious  to  tell  it ;  but  where  will  you  find  a  friend  that  you  can 
trust — a  man  that  will  keep  it  to  himself — a  man  in  whose  honor, 
in  whose  secrecy,  you  can  rely  as  you  would  rely  upon  your  own 
life  ?  Where  do  you  find  this  man  ?  It  is  very  hard  to  find  him. 
I  do  not  speak  at  all  of  finding  a  woman.  As  a  rule,  the  best  way 
to  have  a  thing  published  to  the  four  winds  of  heaven  is  to  tell  it 
to  a  woman.  I  remember  once  I  was  going  to  preach  a  sermon 
in  Dublin,  on  a  Sunday,  for  some  charity  or  other ;  and  they  came 
to  me  at  the  last  moment,  and  said :  "  Will  you  preach  on  Sun- 
day;  we  want  money  for  this  thing  or  that."  "  Very  well,"  said 
I.  It  was  on  Friday.  "  But,"  said  they,  "  there  is  no  time  to 
publish  it !  "  "  Oh,"  I  said,  "  do  you  leave  it  to  me,  I  will  pub- 
lish it."  And  I  went  to  a  lady  friend  of  mine,  and  I  said,  "  I  want 
to  tell  you  a  secret.  They  have  asked  me  to  preach  on  Sunday 
at  such  a  place  ;  but  I  would  not  have  it  known  for  the  world." 
"  Ah,"  said  she,  "  I  am  the  soul  of  honor."  I  went  away.  I  came 
back  that  road  in  about  half  an  hour,  and  I  met  four  or  five  peo- 
ple on  the  way.  "  Well,  Father  Tom,  you  are  going  to  preach 
at  a  certain  place,  on  Sunday,  at  a  certain  time."  There  was  not 
a  paving-stone  in  Dublin  that  did  not  hear  it.  There  is  our  first 
great  difficulty,  to  find  a  reliable  friend. 

It  seems  almost  inconsistent  in  God — if  I  may  so  say — it 
seems  inconsistent  in  God  to  have  given  to  man  such  a  nature, 
such  a  heart,  that  he  cannot  bear  his  own  sorrows  alone;  and 
yet  to  make  the  true  friends  so  scarce,  and  so  difficult  to  find. 
For,  if  you  find  a  true  friend  that  can  keep  a  secret,  the  next  thing 
is  what  can  he  do  for  you  ?  If  you  tell  him  your  secret,  can  he 
lead  you  out  of  the  difficulty?  Can  he  take  the  burden  off  from 
you  ;  or  can  he  enable  you  to  throw  it  off,  and  think  no  more 
about  it  ?  How  many  times  do  we  meet  a  friend  in  whose  honor 
we  can  trust,  but  a  fool,  who  does  not  know  how  to  say  any- 
thing;  and  if  you  get  anything  from  him,  it  will  be  "ah  !  "  I 
knew  an  old  man  once  who  looked  very  wise — very  wise  ;  looked 
just  like  a  man  that  would  give  you  a  good  advice  ;  and  I  had 
something  or  other  that  was  fretting  me  very  much  ;  and  I 
knew  that  I  could  trust  to  his  honor.  So  I  said  to  him :  "  I 
want  you  to  show  me  the  way  out  of  this  difficulty."  Do  you 
know  the  answer  I  got?  "  Oh,  blood  alive!  Oh,  blood  alive!  " 
I  remember,  when  a  little  boy,  my  mother  had  something  fret- 


of  the  Catholic  Church.  381 

ting  her — some  family  difficulty;  I  do  not  know  what  it  was — 
but,  at  any  rate,  she  went  to  a  confidential  friend  to  get  advice, 
and  unbosom  her  trouble  ;  and  all  the  advice  she  could  get  was, 
as  she  was  telling  the  story  faithfully,  with  all  the  circumstances 
about  what  "  she  said,"  and  "  he  said  " — all  she  could  get  from 
her  friend,  as  she  was  rocking  herself  this  way  and  that  way,  to 
and  fro,  was,  "  Oh,  wirra,  wirra !  "  Now,  if  our  friends  can  do 
nothing  more  for  us  than  to  open  their  eyes,  and  say,  "  Lord 
help  you  !  "  and  "  Oh,  wirra,  wirra !  "  it  is  not  worth  while  to 
go  to  the  trouble  of  telling  our  secrets,  or  of  asking  advice  from 
them.  But  God  has  provided  in  the  Catholic  Church  a  mighty 
vent  for  this  natural  craving  of  man.  Mark  how  beautifully  the 
confessional  harmonizes  with  all  this.  The  Catholic  man  or  woman 
who  has  something  or  other  as  a  source  of  mental  anxiety  and 
fretting — something  that  has  been  said  or  done,  the  keeping  of 
which,  in  his  own  bosom,  is  breaking  his  heart ; — the  Catholic 
man  or  woman  knows  that,  in  the  first  priest  he  meets,  he  has 
a  friend  whom  God  has  provided  for  him  ;  in  whose  honor  and 
secrecy  he  can  place  implicit  confidence ;  who  can  give  him  as 
much  relief  as  Jesus  Christ  would  give  him  if  he  came  to  Him. 
He  knows  he  can  trust  to  the  secrecy  of  the  priest ;  for  in  truth, 
my  friend,  the  Catholic  priest  has  no  merit  for  keeping  secrets : 
he  has  no  secrets  to  keep.  The  priest  sits  in  the  confessional 
and  hears  the  sin  of  the  penitent  in  one  ear.  He  pauses  for  an 
instant,  looks  at  that  sin ;  judges  its  gravity,  its  enormity,  and 
the  circumstances ;  says  a  few  words  of  advice,  and  tells  the 
penitent,  "You  must  avoid  this  thing  or  that  ;  this  sin  is  great- 
er than  you  imagine ;  see  the  injury  you  have  done  ;  see  how 
painful  to  the  heart  of  God  such  and  such  an  action  must  be, 
for  He  says  so  and  so  in  the  Scriptures  ;  "  and  he  gives  such  and 
such  advice  ;  and  he  lets  the  sin  out  of  the  other  ear;  and  it 
does  not  stay  in  his  mind  at  all.  St.  Augustine  says,  in  his  own 
admirable  manner :  "  The  priest  knows  less  about  what  he  hears 
in  the  confessional  than  if  he  never  heard  it  at  all."  The  man 
going  to  confession  is  like  a  little  child  taking  a  pebble  from  off 
the  sand,  and,  going  over  the  waters,  on  a  still,  calm  day,  he 
drops  the  pebble  in  the  lake.  For  an  instant  there  is  a  ripple 
upon  the  water ;  but  the  wavelets  die  away  ;  the  face  of  the 
water  becomes  smooth  again ;  and  the  pebble  that  the  child  has 
dropped,  no  man.  no  human  eye,  shall  ever  see  again.     We  go 


382  The  Harmony  of  the   Worship 

to  confession  ;  we  drop  our  sin  before  the  priest ;  we  tell  him  of 
such  and  such  a  deed.  For  an  instant  it  makes  a  ripple  upon 
the  organ  that  receives  it  ;  for  an  instant,  the  wavelets  of  con- 
sideration are  rippling  over  the  mind  of  the  priest ;  then  that 
mind  settles  into  its  own  calm  serenity  again.  The  sin  is  gone  ; 
but  no  eye  of  man  upon  the  earth,  nor  of  gasping  demons  in 
hell,  nor  of  angel  in  heaven,  shall  ever  behold  that  sin  again. 

My  friends,  it  is  painful  and  difficult  for  a  man  to  be  obliged 
to  go  frequently  and  tell  every  thought  of  his  mind,  his  inmost 
secrets — raking  out  his  heart,  analyzing  his  motives  ;  taking  his 
actions  to  task,  and  seeing  whether  they  are  conformable  with 
the  just  judgment  of  God.  It  is  a  difficult  thing,  and  painful ; 
and  yet  it  is  the  greatest  consolation,  by  far,  of  the  Catholic 
life.  It  is  the  one  doctrine  of  Catholicity  which  converts  to 
Protestantism  find  most  difficult  to  give  up.  We  read  that  a 
certain  town  in  Germany  having  given  up  the  practice  of  the 
confessional  for  a  certain  number  of  years,  things  were  going 
back  so,  and  getting  so  bad  that  they  actually  petitioned  to 
have  the  usage  of  the  confessional  restored.  I  remember  a  man 
coming  to  me  to  confession  once  ;  and  when  he  finished  his  con- 
fession— he  was  a  great  big,  strapping,  whole-souled  Irishman  ; 
he  was  six  feet  two — and  when  he  got  up  from  his  knees,  he 
did  this  :  [Here  the  lecturer  threw  his  hands  above  his  head,  and 
stretched  himself  as  high  as  he  could] — "  Just  look  here,  your 
reverence  ;  look  at  me.  Did  you  see  that  stretch  ?  "  "I  did." 
"  That  was  more  than  I  was  able  to  do  at  all  when  I  came  in."  If 
there  be  any  Catholics  amongst  you  who  neglect  this  sacrament ; 
if  there  be  any  Protestant  friends  amongst  you  who  do  not 
believe  in  it,  tell  me,  my  friends,  is  it  any  great  advantage  to 
you  to  be  carrying  your  harrowing  secrets  to  the  grave?  Is  it 
any  advantage  to  you,  humanly  speaking — for  I  am  only  speak- 
ing from  the  human  side — is  it  any  advantage  to  you — this  in- 
crustation of  sin  and  remorse  upon  you — when  before  you  is  a 
man  with  his  divine  commission  in  his  hand — with  Christ  Him- 
self at  his  side — saying:  "  Whose  sins  you  shall  forgive  upon 
earth,  I  will  forgive  in  heaven?  " 

Thirdly,  the  third  great  point  of  Catholic  worship  is  the 
Blessed  Virgin  Mary,  and  the  position  she  holds  in  the  doctrines 
and  the  practices  of  the  Church.  If  there  be  one  thing  more 
than  all  others  that  seems  to  me  unnatural  in  the  frame  of  mind 


of  the  Catholic  Church.  383 

and  in  the  language  of  those  who  are  outside  of  the  Catholic 
Church,  it  is  the  manner  in  which  they  think  and  speak  of  the 
Blessed  Virgin  Mary.     Now,  in  order  to  understand  how  har- 
moniously the  Virgin  Mary  fits  in  with  the  thoughts  and  aspira- 
tions of  the  natural  heart  of  man,  all  that  you  have  to  do  is  to 
reflect  with  me  for  an   instant.     Christianity,  my  friends,  the 
Christian  religion,  no  matter  in  what  church  it  may  really  be — 
we  know  that  it  is  in  the  Catholic   Church,  and  in  the  Catholic 
Church  only — Christianity  is  based  upon  two  great  truths — name- 
ly, that  the  Eternal  God  came  down  from  heaven ;  and  that  He 
became  as  truly  man  as  He  was  God.     If  you  deny  the  divinity 
of  Jesus  Christ,  you  are  no  Christian.     If  you  deny  the  humanity 
of  Jesus  Christ,  you  are  no  Christian.    Belief  in  one  is  as  necessary 
as  belief  in  the  other.     It  was  a  question  of  redeeming  mankind  ; 
and  only  God  could  do  it.     Yet  God  alone  could  not  do  it.     How 
strange  this  may  sound  to  you  !   God  alone  could  be  the  Redeem- 
er ;  yet  God  could  not  be  the  Redeemer  alone,  unless  he  consent- 
ed to  become  man.  A  victim  was  necessary,  of  infinite  merit.  God 
alone  could  be  such  a  victim,  but  God,  in  His  own  divine  nature, 
could  not  suffer ;    therefore  He  had  to  come  down  from  heaven 
and  take  our  human  nature,  and  become  as  truly  man  as  He  was 
God.     What  does  this  mean  ?     It   means  that  the  redemption 
of  the  world  was  effected  by  Christ,  our  Lord,  as  the  Son  of  the 
Virgin  Mary  ;  because  it  was  effected   in    His  humanity.     She 
was  as  necessary  to  the  scheme  of  redemption  as  the  eternal 
Father  in  heaven.     The  Word  eternal  was  begotten  before  all 
ages  of  the  Father ;  and  the  Father  gave    His  eternal  Son  to 
earth.     "  The  Word  was  made  flesh "  in   Mary's  womb ;    and 
Mary  brought  forth  her  Son,  God ;  because  when  He  took  our 
human  nature.  He  did  not  take  our  human  personality;  He  did 
not  take  the  human   individuality  ;  the  individual,  or  person, 
was  divine.     The  two  things  were  there  :  all  that  was  God  was 
there ;  all  that  was  man  was  there ;  and  the  person  that  was 
born  of  Mary  was  the   Son  of  God  ;  because  Christ,  our  Lord, 
was  one  person,  though  two  natures  ;  and  that  person  was  divine, 
and    not    human.     But    it   was   in   virtue  of  that  nature,  and 
through   that   nature,  which  He,  the  eternal    God,  took  from 
Mary,  that  he  saved  the  world..    Now,  reflect  upon  this.     God 
gave  Him  from  heaven  ;  Mary  gave  Him  from  earth.     His  rela- 
tion from  eternity  to   the  Father  was  that  of  the  true  Son  of 


384  The  Harmony  of  the   Worship 

God.     His  relation  to  Mary,  from  the  moment  of  His  Incarna- 
tion was  that  He  was  her  own  true  Son.     Now,  Christianity  is 
based  upon  the  adoration  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  of  Him  alone; 
the  love  of  Him  ;  the  proclaiming  and  upholding  of  His  glory. 
There  is  no  other  name  given  under  heaven,  whereby  men  may 
be  saved.     There  is   no  other  God  but  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 
He  is  "  true   God  of  true  God."     What  do  I  mean  when  I  say 
that   Christianity  is   based  upon  the  adoration  of  Jesus  Christ? 
Do  I  not   mean  that,  whatever  Jesus   Christ  is.  He  is  my  God  ; 
that  He  is  the  object  of  my  adoration  as  the  Son  of  the  Virgin 
Mary  as  well  as  the  Son  of  God  ?    Nay,  more.     The  very  name, 
Jesus — which  means  Saviour — He  took  not   from  heaven  but 
from  Mary.     He  was  the  Saviour  of  the  world,  because  He  was 
able  to  suffer  for  the  sins  of  mankind,  and  shed  His  blood  ;  and 
He  was  able  to  shed  that  blood,  as  His  Mother's  Son — as  the 
Virgin's  Son.     Therefore,    when    we  venerate   Him    and    His 
adorable  name,  the  name  at  the  sound  of  which  every  knee  un- 
der heaven  must  bend — when  we  speak  that  name,  it  is  as  the 
Son  of  the  Virgin  as  well  as  the  Son  of  God. 

Now,  I  ask,  can  there   be  anything  more   unnatural  than  to 
love  the  Son  and  to  despise  the  Mother?    Nay,  more  ;  to  love  the 
Son  because  He  is  His  Mother's  Son  ;  to   love  Jesus  Christ  as 
such,  because  He  is  His  Mother's  Son,  because,  as   such.  He  is 
our  Redeemer — can  you  imagine  a  man  adhering  to  and  loving 
Christ,  our  Lord,  precisely  because    He  was   the  Virgin's  Son, 
and  yet  turning  around  and  despising  the  Virgin  Mother  that 
gave    Him  birth  ?     It  is   certainly  against  the   law  of    nature. 
What  is  the  consequence?     Every  pious  and  high-minded  Prot- 
estant, in   his  heart  and  in   his  soul,  has  the  deepest  love  and 
reverence  for  the  Virgin  Mary.     His  heart  must  be  better  than 
his  system.     Is  it  a  wonder  that  Catholics  say  so  much  of  her ! 
There  was  a   little  boy  in    Ireland  playing  about   on  the  road, 
and  there  was   a   Protestant  clergyman  passing  by  and  he  was 
very  fond  of  children.      He  took  the  boy  up  and  patted  him. 
"Well,    little   fat    boy,    are    you    a   Catholic?"      "Yes,    sir." 
"  Now,  tell  me  this :  Why  do  you  think  so  much  of  the  Virgin 
Mary?     Was  she  any  better  than  any  other  woman?"     "Oh 
yes,  she  was  a  sight  better  than  any  other  woman."     "  Oh,  well, 
she  was  not  much  different  from  my  mother."     "  Oh,  yes,"  said 
the  little  boy,  brightening  up,  "  if  the  mothers  were  so  wonder- 


of  the  Catholic  Church.  385 

fully  like  one  another,  is  not  there  a  great  difference  between 
the  two  sons  ?  " 

In  the  mystery  of  the  Incarnation,  as  it  fitted  in  the  mind  of 
God,  Mary  stood  forth  as  the  prominent  figure.  "  I  saw,"  said 
the  Evangelist;  "and behold,  a  great  sign  appeared  in  heaven," 
— not  upon  earth,  but  in  heaven,  that  is,  in  the  great  counsels 
of  God.  What  was  this  sign?  "A  woman  clothed  with  the 
sun,  with  the  moon  beneath  her  feet,  and  upon  her  head  a  crown 
of  twelve  stars."  The  woman — the  great  co-opcratrix  with  God 
— the  woman,  the  Mother  of  the  Son,  from  whose  veins  were 
taken  the  blood  that  was  shed  upon  Calvary  that  washed  away 
the  sins  of  men. 

But  Protestants  say,  "  That  is  not  quite  the  question.  Our 
difficulty  is  that  you  pray  to  the  Virgin  Mary."  I  answer, 
"  We  do."  Let  us  see  if  this  harmonizes  with  the  facts  and 
nature  of  man.  Tell  me,  if  you  wanted  a  favor  from  some  high, 
mighty  person,  and  that  you  knew  if  you  spoke  a  word  to  his 
mother,  and  she  said  a  word  to  him,  he  would  grant  your  peti- 
tion— would  you  not  be  a  great  fool  if  you  did  not  apply  to  the 
mother?  "Ah!  but,"  you  say,  "  if  you  speak  to  the  mother, 
and  ask  her  to  ask  Him,  it  shows  distrust  in  Him."  Not  at  all-. 
Why,  if  I  did  not  have  confidence  in  Him,  I  would  not  ask 
Mary  to  ask  Him  for  me.  If  we  ask  Him  anything,  it  is  because 
we  know  that  we  are  poor,  needy  creatures.  Shall  we  presume 
and  say  God  will  give  me  anything  I  ask  at  once?  Now,  we 
know  that  when  one  of  Job's  companions  was  in  sin,  God  said  : 
"  Go  to  my  servant  Job,  and  get  him  to  offer  sacrifice  for  thee, 
and  for  his  sake  I  will  forgive  thee."  We  know  that  in  the 
days  of  Jesus,  there  were  certain  persons  that  went  to  Philip, 
and  said,  "  Will  you  be  kind  enough  to  speak  to  the  Master; 
we  want  to  speak  to  Him?"  And  Philip  goes  to  Peter,  be- 
cause he  was  the  great  man  amongst  them,  and  he  said:  "  There 
are  people  here  that  want  to  speak  to  our  Master."  And  Peter 
went  and  said  :  "  There  are  persons  who  want  to  speak  to  you." 
There  were  two  intercessions  before  they  spoke  to  our  Lord. 
Does  that  show  that  they  lacked  faith  in  Him  ?  They  wanted 
to  speak  to  Him  ;  that  is  why  they  spoke  to  the  apostles  ;  and 
that  is  the  reason  why  Catholics  pray  to  the  Virgin  Mary.  We 
know  that  she  can  do  nothing  for  us  ;  she  is  only  a  creature 
like  us.     We  know  that  she  is  not  the  fountain  of  grace ;  but 

25 


386  The  Harmony  of  the   Worship 

we  know  how  dear  she  was  to  Him.  Ah,  we  know  that,  in  the 
day  when  He  went  forth  from  Nazareth,  on  His  pubHc  mission, 
she  was  by  His  side.  On  their  way,  they  sat  down  to  a  wed- 
ding feast,  at  Cana;  and  the  people  saw  the  Son,  and  saw  how 
reverential  He  was  to  His  mother;  and  how  careful  He  was 
with  her.  And  when  they  ran  short  of  wine,  they  went  and 
spoke  to  Mary,  and  she  spoke  to  her  divine  Son,  and  said  : 
"They  have  no  wine."  She  immediately  turned  round  to 
them,  and  said  :  "  Whatever  He  tells  you  to  do,  do  it."  And 
He  told  them  to  fill  six  great  vessels  with  water;  and  He 
glanced  upon  it  with  the  eye  of  God,  and  it  was  wine ;  because 
His  mother  wished  it.  Now,  I  am  not  speaking  as  a  Catholic 
priest ;  I  am  reasoning,  as  if  not  a  Catholic,  with  these  facts 
before  me.  I  say  that  Christ,  our  Lord,  is  the  typical  man,  and 
that  we,  Christians,  are  called  upon  to  form  ourselves  upon 
Him.  And,  I  ask,  would  you  not  think  less  of  our  Lord — be  it 
said  with  all  reverence — would  you  not  think  less  of  our  Lord  if 
He  disregarded  His  mother  ?  Would  He  be  the  model  man  ? 
And  is  it  not  consonant  with  our  own  thoughts,  that  she  who 
suffered  so  much  for  Him,  that  she  who  was  thought  worthy  of 
Him,  who  was  honored  by  Him  above  all  creatures — that  she 
should  have  it  in  her  power  to  say  a  word  for  you  or  me  if  we 
invoke  her  name,  and  say  to  her:  "  Holy  Mary,  Mother  of  God, 
of  yourself  you  can  do  nothing  for  us  ;  but  pray  for  us,  sinners, 
now  and  in  the  hour  of  our  death !  "  Is  it  any  wonder  that, 
when  I  asked  the  poor  fellow  what  he  thought  about  Protest- 
antism, he  scratched  the  back  of  his  head,  and  said :  "  I  felt  that 
it  was  not  natural  like." 

Now  we  come  to  the  fourth  great  feature  of  the  Catholic 
Church,  which  is,  in  fact,  the  worship  itself — the  Liturgy. 
Mark  how  different  it  is  in  the  Catholic  from  other  denomina- 
tions. You  enter  any  other  temple  in  the  land ;  you  look  up  ; 
you  see  a  table  with  a  piece  of  green  baize  over  it,  a  couple  of 
chairs,  and  an  organ ;  and  that  is  about  all.  You  enter  the 
Catholic  Church,  and  the  first  thing  you  see  is  the  blessed  altar, 
and  the  crucifix.  Perhaps  an  image  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  is 
over  her  altar,  and  an  image  of  St.  Joseph  is  over  his  altar;  the 
lamp  is  burning  before  the  tabernacle  ;  fresh  flowers  are  upon 
the  altar ;  and  beautiful  candlesticks  are  upholding  the  lights  ; 
the  organ  is  pealing  forth ;    and  everything   is  leading    your 


of  the  Catholic  Church.  387 

thoughts  and  your  heart  to  the  idea  of  worship.  You  enter  the 
Catholic  Church,  and  you  find  it  differing  almost  every  day. 
To-day  you  find  it  lighted  up  in  splendor  ;  to-morrow  it  is 
robed  in  black.  What  does  all  this  mean  ?  Why,  worship 
means  the  external  form  and  manifestation  of  the  faith  that  is 
within.  Worship  is  not  faith  ;  worship  belongs  to  the  virtue 
of  religion :  that  is  to  say,  the  manifestation  of  faith.  Thus, 
every  form  of  religion  has  its  worship.  The  ancient  Greek 
bowed  down  before  Jupiter  and  Apollo.  The  fire-worshiper 
in  ancient  Ireland  sent  his  priest  up  to  the  summit  of  the  round 
tower,  and  there  the  ancient  Druid  sat  and  turned  an  expectant 
eye  to  the  East,  and  watched  the  morning  star  as  it  twinkled  in 
the  sky,  and  then,  as  with  eager  eye,  he  saw  Aurora  rising 
with  her  crimson  blush,  he  watched  for  the  very  first  wave  that 
came  over  the  eastern  hills,  and  then  he  cried :  "  He  comes  ! 
He  comes!"  and  they  fell  and  worshiped  the  sun  in  heaven. 
That  was  their  worship.  Now,  Catholic  worship  means  the 
manifestation  of  the  faith  which  the  Church  of  God  has.  That 
faith  is  centred  in  Jesus  Christ  as  its  all  in  all.  He  is  the 
centre ;  He  is  the  circumference  of  the  Church's  faith,  the 
object  of  her  faith,  the  object  of  her  hope,  the  centre  of  her 
love ;  and  the  Scriptures  expressly  tell  us  that  the  duty  of 
every  Christian  man,  and,  consequently,  of  the  Church  of  God, 
is  to  reproduce  in  worship  the  life  of  Jesus  Christ.  That  life  is 
our  all  in  all.  It  is  our  religion.  The  consequence  is,  that  the 
Catholic  Church  is  incessantly,  unceasingly  reproducing  the  life 
of  Jesus  Christ,  driving  it  into  their  minds  and  into  their  hearts, 
appealing  to  their  senses,  appealing  to  every  element  of  knowl- 
edge that  is  in  them,  and  always  the  one  story,  the  self-same 
recurring  tale,  the  life  of  Christ,  the  life  of  Christ.  The  twenty- 
fifth  of  March  comes  ;  the  Catholics  enter  their  church  ;  and  the 
moment  they  enter,  they  hear  the  choir  pealing  forth  from  the 
organ  gallery,  or  the  priest :  "  The  angel  Gabriel  was  sent  from 
God  to  a  Virgin,  and  he  saluted  her  and  said :  '  Thou  shalt  con- 
ceive and  bring  forth  a  Son.'  "  Over  the  altar  is  a  picture  of 
the  angel  bowing  down  before  the  wonder  of  divine  grace 
which  his  eyes  beheld  in  Mary.  There  is  the  image  of  Mary 
decked  with  flowers,  as  becomes  one  crowned  with  so  great 
a  glory.  The  Son  came  down  from  heaven  and  set  for  a 
while  in  Mary,  that  from  Mary  He  might  rise  again  as  man 


388  The  Harmony  of  the   Worship 

unto  the  illumination  of  the  Gentiles  and  the  salvation  of  tlie 
people. 

Later  on,  a  Christmas  morning  shines  forth  upon  the  crisp 
hoar  frost  and  snow.  Amid  the  rigors  of  winter  there  arises  a 
sound  of  joy,  a  chiming  of  the  midnight  bells,  a  pealing  forth  of 
the  organ,  filling  the  night  with  its  melody;  and  the  burden  of 
the  song  is  as  the  angel  sang  in  the  night-watches  around  Beth- 
lehem :  "  Glory  in  the  highest  heavens  to  God,  and  on  earth 
peace  to  men  of  good  will ! "  You  enter  the  Catholic  Church, 
and  it  is  all  a  blaze  of  light  ;  around  every  altar  a  riot  of  joy  ; 
in  the  side  chapel  the  figure  of  the  Babe  newly  born,  and  the 
men  and  the  women  adoring,  and  the  shepherds  kneeling  and 
presenting  their  gifts.  Does  this  not  bring  home  to  every  man 
more  forcibly  the  mystery  of  the  day.  Through  all  this  jubila- 
tion it  seems  to  us,  in  the  joy  of  our  Christmas  morning,  as  if 
we  beheld  the  Church  of  God  holding  the  new-born  Man,  and 
lifting  Him  up  to  His  Father  in  the  first  ecstasy  of  delight  at 
beholding  His  face.  When,  after  a  few  days,  the  joy  of  the 
Epiphany  passes  over,  let  the  feast  of  all  the  solemn  mysteries 
of  His  life  be  solemnized.  Ash  Wednesday  comes.  Christ 
our  Lord  began  His  public  mission  by  entering  into  the  desert  as 
an  humble  and  a  penitent  man,  bowed  down  by  the  sins  of  four 
thousand  years  of  the  generations  of  men  ;  and  He  knelt  down 
in  the  silent  desert  place,  and  put  up  His  hands  to  pray.  The 
sun  rose,  and  the  first  beam  fell  upon  the  upturned  face  of  the 
Man,  and  its  long  shadows  passed  over  the  surface  of  the  earth  ; 
and  still  He  prayed.  The  sun  was  in  its  meridian  glory  to  high 
noon,  and  its  ardent  rays  beat  upon  the  upturned  face  of  the 
kneeling  Man  ;  and  still  He  fainted  not,  but  prayed.  The  sun 
sank  in  the  desert,  and  yet  the  shadow  of  Him  who  prayed  was 
flung  over  the  sand.  Still  were  the  hands  lifted  up  ;  still  quiv- 
ering with  earnestness  and  love  did  Jesus  pray.  Night  came, 
and  the  stars  came  out  silently  upon  the  blue  face  of  heaven, 
and  like  glittering  gems  they  glistenened  and  trembled  as  if 
they  had  life,  looking  down  upon  the  face  of  their  God.  The 
moon  shone  with  adoration  all  around  Him  ;  and  still  he  prayed. 
And  forty  days  and  nights  pass  on,  and  there  was  the  Redeem- 
er, His  eyes  never  closed  one  moment  to  rest.  No  food  crossed 
those  pallid  lips,  no  drop  of  water  refreshed  Him  in  the  thirst 
of  the  burning  day.      He  remained  there  and   prayed.     Ash 


of  the  Catholic  Church.  389 

Wednesday  comes  once  a  year,  and  the  Church  of  God  puts  aside 
her  splendid  robes,  her  Christmas  and  Epiphany  joy ;  and  the 
song  of  praise  and  joy  is  no  longer  heard.  She  clothes  herself 
in  sack-cloth  and  puts  ashes  upon  her  head,  and  to  her  chil- 
dren she  says :  "  My  spouse  is  in  sorrow  ;  my  God,  and  your 
God  has  gone  into  the  desert  to  fast  and  to  pray  ;  and  together 
let  us  approach  and  join  Him ;  "  and  she  leads  us  into  the  des- 
ert of  fasting  and  prayer  during  the  forty  days  of  Lent — His 
forty  days  of  prayer.  You  enter  the  Catholic  Church  and  there 
is  desolation  all  around  you.  You  behold  nothing  of  all  its  or- 
naments, and  all  its  tokens  of  praise  and  joy;  but,  high  above 
a  mass  of  sombre  drapery  rises  a  great  figure  of  Jesus  Christ 
crucified.  Looking  down  we  behold  there — very  grave  and 
very  much  cast  down,  as  one  helpless  in  desolation  and  sor- 
row at  the  foot  of  that  cross — we  behold  the  prostrate  figure 
of  the  holy  Church,  the  spouse  of  Jesus  Christ.  What  sorrow 
is  upon  her?  Oh,  the  sorrow  of  the  Virgin  Mother  !  "  Come, 
oh,  come,  into  this  mountain  of  desolation  ;  come  and  stand  here 
with  me,  and  behold  my  Son  upon  that  cross  !  "  Oh,  you  who 
have  sorrowed,  was  there  ever  sorrow  such  as  the  sorrow  of  the 
Catholic  Church?  The  young  Protestant  man  goes  to  his 
Church,  and  hears  the  peal  of  joy  in  the  organ,  and  is  told  to 
rejoice  in  the  atonement  ;  he  is  told  to  rejoice  and  be  glad ;  he 
knows  nothing  of  the  dying  sorrow  of  the  Saviour.  The  Cath- 
olic goes  home  to  eat  his  morsel  of  dry  bread.  The  Protestant 
goes  home  and  enjoys  his  "  hot  cross-buns,"  and  then  takes  his 
fowling-piece  and  goes  out ;  for  the  banks  are  closed,  and  in 
fact  it  is  a  "  holiday."  Oh,  how  strange  that  a  man  who  will 
keep  the  anniversary  of  his  father's  death  as  a  day  of  gloom  ; 
who  will  on  that  day  clothe  himself  in  the  weeds  of  mourning, 
and  will  not  appear  at  festival  or  dinner-table,  will  not  go  to 
his  business,  but  spend  the  day  in  sorrow  ; — how  strange  and 
how  unnatural  that  such  a  man  will  dress  himself  in  his  best, 
and  go  out  on  pleasure  with  his  friends,  on  the  day  that  beheld 
the  Virgin's  Son^-the  Son  of  God,  naked  and  dying  on  the 
cross ! 

But,  wait  a  while.  Only  wait  for  another  day.  Let  the  storm 
of  her  desolation  and  her  sorrow  sweep  over  the  Virgin's  breast, 
and  over  the  holy  Catholic  Church  ;  but  another  day  ;  and  now, 
enter  the  church  on  Easter  morning;  oh,  what  a  change  !     No 


390  The  Harmony  of  the  Worship 

sound  of  grief  is  within  her  ;  no  blood-stain  is  upon  her ;  she 
has  cast  aside  all  the  cerements  of  sorrow.  The  fairest  flowers 
of  Spring  are  upon  the  altar;  lights  innumerable  are  brilliant 
there ;  a  song  peals  forth  from  her  lips  ;  it  is  the  hallelujah  of 
joy,  "  He  has  risen  again.  He  shall  never  die  any  more.  Hal- 
lelujah !  let  us  rejoice  and  be  glad,  for  the  Saviour  is  risen,  and 
we  have  sought  the  living  amongst  the  dead  ;  but  we  have  found 
Him  not  !  "  Here  we  are  called  upon  to  rejoice  and  to  accom- 
pany Him,  step  by  step,  until  with  the  apostles  we  lift  up  our 
eyes,  straining  after  the  figure  that  recedes  from  us  in  the  clouds 
of  heaven,  and  waves  above  our  heads  His  last  benediction, 
whilst  with  our  ears  we  catch  the  hosannas  of  the  nine  choirs  of 
angels,  bursting  from  heaven,  and  coming  forth  to  welcome 
Christ  on  His  return. 

The  life  of  Christ — how  beautifully  and  harmoniously  is  it 
brought  out ;  how  much  we  are  assisted  by  this.  "  I  got  no 
help,"  said  the  poor  man.  "  Even  if  the  Protestant  religion  were 
the  true  one,  it  does  not  help  a  man.  I  went  on  Good  Friday, 
and  Easter,  and  Christmas  ;  and  it  was  the  same,  and  I  was 
never  helped."  But  the  Catholic  Church,  the  great  mother, 
constantly  brings  forth  mystery  after  mystery,  forever  reveal- 
ing the  untold  beauties  of  her  Lord,  her  spouse,  in  the  thousand 
forms  in  which  they  reveal  themselves  in  every  fair  action,  and 
in  every  divine  mystery  of  the  life  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 

One  word,  and  I  have  done.  This  is  the  faith,  this  is  the 
harmonious  worship  that  my  native  land  received  from  the  lips 
of  St.  Patrick  fifteen  hundred  years  ago.  Pardon  me.  my  friends, 
such  of  you  as  are  not  Irish,  nor  of  Irish  birth,  pardon  me,  if 
the  last  word  that  I  have  to  speak  to  you  this  evening  be  spoken 
to  you  as  an  Irishman.  My  dear  American  friends,  you  have 
not  on  the  face  of  this  earth  a  more  honest  nor  a  more  ardent 
admirer  of  yourselves  nor  your  country,  than  I  am.  There  is 
not  a  heart  throbbing  this  night  in  the  bosom  of  man  that  beats 
towards  America  with  greater  gratitude  than  this  heart  of  mine, 
for  the  noble  welcome  that  this  mighty  Columbia  gave  to  my 
afflicted  brethren  from  Ireland,  And  yet,  I  crave  your  pardon 
if  I  remind  you  that  it  was  a  thousand  years  before  ever  Colum- 
bus sailed  for  America  that  Ireland  heard  from  the  lips  of  St. 
Patrick  the  glories  and  the  beauties  and  the  harmonies  of  the 
Catholic  Church.     And  when  he  had  preached  and  converted 


of  the  Catholic  Church.  391 

our  fathers,  and  when  he  had  set  up  that  glorious  electric  light 
from  heaven,  of  divine  faith,  that  shed  its  rays  in  noonday  splen- 
dor over  the  whole  land,  and  when  he  had  seen  that  sanctity 
that  flowered  forth  under  his  own  eyes  in  the  first  virgin  saint 
of  Ireland — St.  Bridget — when  he  had  done  all  this,  and  when 
one  hundred  winters  were  over  his   head,  he  lay  down  to   die, 
and,  in  his  last  moments,  the  love  that  was  in  his  heart  was  the 
thought  of  his  beloved  Ireland.     It  was  in  the   Irish  language 
that  he  spoke  the  last  words  of  love  and  prayer  to  the  Virgin 
Mary's  Son,  through  Mary,  His  mother,  whom  he  had  taught 
the  Irish  people  to   love.     And  what  were  his  last  words  of 
prayer  ?     Struggling,  like  a  strong  man,  with  the  angel  of  death, 
he   cried  out  with  a  loud  voice  :  "  O  Jesus  Christ,  Thou  know- 
est  that  I  have  loved  and  labored  for  Thee  alone,  and  for  this 
country  of  Ireland  and  its  people.     Hear,  O  Son  of  God,  hear 
the  last  words  of  a  dying  man,  dying  from   the  labors  I  have 
undergone  for  them.     I   claim  as  my  only  reward,  and   I  put  it 
forth  as  my  last  prayer,  O  Son  of  the  Virgin,  let  Ireland  never 
lose  her  Catholic  faith."     The  loud  cry  of  the  dying  saint  pene- 
trated the  clouds.     It  came,   like  the  voice   of  an   archangel, 
storming  at  the  doors  of  heaven,  that  it  might  be  heard.     It 
passed  through  the  nine  choirs  of  God's  angels.     It  encircled 
Mary's  throne — that    last    prayer    of  her    dying   servant   and 
lover  upon  earth.     Mary  rose  at  Patrick's  call.     She  knelt  be- 
fore the  throne,  and  said  :     "  O  Son  of  God,  I  join  my  prayer 
with   that  of  Thy  servant.     Rise,  O    Son    of  God,  enter  Thy 
judgment."     The    Son    of  God   arose,  and,    bending,    let    His 
glance  fall  upon  the  Emerald  Isle  of  the  Western  Ocean,  and 
He  said:  "Thus  saith    the    Lord  God — who  saith  that  which 
shall  never  pass  away  to    the    end    of  time — Ireland,  I  bless 
thee  ;  thy  faith  shall  never  pass  away  to  the  end  of  time." 


THE  POSITION  AND  PRIVILEGES  OF 

THE  POPE. 


[Delivered  in  the  Academy  of  Music,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.] 

Y  FRIENDS  :  You  know  the  subject  on  which  I  am 
about  to  address  you.    Of  all  the  names  that  the  world 
has  given  to  men  to  designate  their  office,  there  is  not 
one  more  familiar  to  be  found  than  the  name  of  "  The 
Pope."      The  whole  world  is  divided   into   two  real,  distinct 
camps  on  this  question  of  the  Pope.     The  moment  his  name  is 
mentioned — either  personally  or  in  virtue  of  his  office — you  in- 
stantly hear  a  cry  of  detestation   from  his  enemies,  or  a  shout 
of  joy  and  love  from  his  friends.    There  is  no  man,  no  emperor, 
warrior  or  statesman,  who  occupies  so  much  of  the  public  mind 
or   public    attention ;    and    this    is   just    and    reasonable ;    for, 
whether  for  friend  or  for  foe,  the  Pope  is  still  the  most  remark- 
able man   in  the   world.     For  his   friends,  his  lovers,  and   his 
children,  he  is  all  that  I  shall  endeavor  to  prove  him  this  night 
to   be  ;  and  for  those  who  do  not  believe  in  his  position,  in  his 
power,  or   in  his  privileges,  he  is   still  the  greatest  mystery  in 
existence,  simply  because  he  is  in  existence  at  all.     For,  that  a 
man  with  the  Pope's  power,  if  his  purposes  be  false — that  a  man 
whose  existing  claims  are  acknowledged  by  so  many — for  the 
Pope  claims  his  privilege  in  foundation,  in  fact,  and  in  truth — 
that  a  man  claiming  to  be  the  interpreter  of  the  voice  of  God, 
the   one   voice  of  divine   truth   on   the  earth,  commanding  the 
obedience  and   guiding  the  councils  of  hundreds  of  millions — 
that  such  a  man  can  exist  in  this  nineteenth  century  of  ours,  is 
one  of  the  greatest  mysteries  of  the  age.     If  there  be  one  thing, 
my  friends,  that  we  plume  ourselves  and  pride  ourselves  on. 


The  Position  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope.  393 

more  than  anything  else,  it  is  that,  in  this  nineteenth  century 
of  ours,  a  sham  and  a  humbug  is  very  soon  found  out,  and  vain, 
grandiloquent  professions  are  exploded  in  a  shout  of  laughter. 
This  century  of  ours  will  stand  a  great  deal.  It  will  stand 
breakers  of  treaties  ;  it  will  stand  a  great  deal  of  bad  work 
behind  the  scenes,  both  in  peace  and  in  war;  but  there  is  one 
thing  that  every  man  of  this  age  of  ours  says  that  the  nine- 
teenth century  cannot  stand ;  and  that  is  a  patent  sham.  If 
the  Pope  be  not  all  that  he  claims  to  be,  where,  since  the  world 
was  created,  can  we  find  such  a  sham  and  humbug  as  he  is. 
For  instance,  if  he  emphatically  said  to  you :  "  You  must 
believe  my  word,  because  I  am  a  very  learned  man.  You  must 
believe  my  word,  because  I  am  a  profound  historian  or  a  great 
philosopher  ;  "  well,  you  may  say,  he  may  be  a  learned  man  ;  he 
may  be  a  historian  ;  but  not  fit  guidance  to  such  as  need  that 
instruction.  He  would  be  laughed  at.  But  when  a  man  comes 
out  and  says :  "  You  must  believe  my  word,  and  take  it  as  the 
word  of  God  !  "  oh  !  if  that  man  could  only  be  proved  to  be  a 
false  interpreter,  why  he  would  go  down  amidst  peals  of  de- 
risive laughter  from  every  man  in  this  age  of  ours.  Therefore 
it  is,  that  both  for  friend  and  for  foe,  the  Pope  is  the  most  re- 
markable and  the  most  important  of  men.  Now,  I  am  come 
here  this  evening  to  tell  you  what  he  is  ;  to  justify  our  faith 
and  belief  in  him  ;  to  prove  that  the  very  highest  efforts  of 
human  intelligence,  straining  after  the  truth,  must  find  that 
truth  upon  the  lips,  on  the  hands,  and  in  the  Head  of  the  Cath- 
olic Church.  I  am  here  to  prove  to  you  what  the  Pope  of  Rome 
is  in  the  sight  of  the  Son  of  God.  Surely,  what  the  Pope  is 
before  Him,  he  is  also  before  us  ;  because  we  are  all  disciples 
and  adorers  of  the  same  God  made  man.  You  have  heard  it 
said,  my  friends,  that  "  an  honest  man  is  the  noblest  work  of 
God  ;  "  and,  indeed,  in  this  boasted  age  of  ours,  some  of  the 
greatest  swindlers  that  have  disgraced  every  path  of  life,  until 
the  moment  the  discovery  of  their  villainy  was  made,  were 
very  fond  of  repeating  this  philosophical  maxim,  thereby  insin- 
uating that  they  were  that  "  work."  But,  I  answer,  that 
there  is  something  now  on  this  earth  more  worthy  of  God — 
higher  and  nobler  than  the  mere  "  honest  man,"  even  in  the 
world's  acceptation  of  that  term.  I  assert  that  the  noblest  and 
highest  work  of  God  on  this  earth  is  the  Holy  Roman  Catholic 


394  T^^^^  Position  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope. 

and  Apostolic  Church ;  and,  in  order  to  prove  this  assertion,  I 
ask  you,  quietly  and  patiently,  to  travel  with  me  a  little  into 
argument. 

You  know,  my  friends,  that,  when  Almighty  God  created  man 
in  the  beginning.  He  made  him  a  noble  creature,  and  that 
He  intended  to  found  upon  him  a  perfect  state  of  society. 
The  perfection  of  that  society,  which  was  to  spring  from  the  un- 
fallen,  sinless  man,  consisted  in  the  possession  of  three  great  gifts : 
First,  in  the  possession  of  God  ;  in  enjoying  his  society ;  in  his 
conversation  ;  in  his  fellowship — as  Adam  enjoyed  it  before  he 
committed  sin.  The  second  was  in  the  possession  of  the  truth; 
all  the  light  of  God  beaming  upon  human  intelligence  ;  bringing 
a  clear,  intuitive  light  of  earth's  knowledge  of  all  things — a 
divine  and  perfect  knowledge  of  all  the  laws  and  mysteries  of 
nature.  Such  knowledge  did  Adam  possess  until  he  fell.  The 
third  grand  gift  in  which  Almighty  God  intended  to  build  up  a 
perfect  society  in  man,  was  the  perfect  beauty  of  order ;  for,  as 
you  know,  my  friends,  "  Order  is  heaven's  first  law."  That  order 
was  to  consist  in  the  submission  of  human  intelligence,  or  rea- 
son, to  the  illuminating  influence  of  God.  In  the  submission  of 
his  will  to  the  intelligence,  and  in  the  dominion  of  will  over  all 
the  passions,  all  the  interior  nature  of  man  was  in  perfect  sub- 
mission to  the  eternal  law ;  a  creature  to  command  the  admira- 
tion of  the  world — the  mystery  of  divine  intelligence — sinless 
man  ! 

Oh,  how  fair,  how  beautiful  is  this  man,  as  he  comes  forth 
from  out  the  mind,  from  the  loving  heart  and  omnipotent  hands 
of  God  !  Oh,  how  grand  is  that  soul,  beaming  with  knowledge, 
filled  with  light !  To  him  all  the  highest  things  of  God,  as  well 
as  the  most  intricate  secrets  of  nature,  are  open — his  mind  illu- 
minated by  their  contemplation.  How  grand  is  that  creature 
that  rises  before  my  eyes  of  faith,  as  I  go  back,  contemplating 
him  before  he  allowed  sin  to  ruin  his  soul  and  to  destroy  in  him 
the  gifts  of  God  !  When  I  behold  my  first  parent  entering  into 
familiar  conversation  with  Almighty  God,  his  voice  falling  upon 
the  ear  of  the  Most  High  as  sweet  music — when  I  behold  him 
commanding  with  undisputed  sway  every  passion,  every 
power  of  his  soul  and  body ;  whilst,  when  he  goes  forth  from 
his  leafy  home,  the  eagle,  soaring  amid  the  clouds,  descends  rap- 
idly upon  his  powerful  wings,  and  swoops  to  his  feet ;  the  tiger 


The  Position  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope.  395 

and  the  Hon  come  forth  from  their  lair  to  h'ck  the  feet  of  their 
imperial  master  ;  all  nature  is  obedient  to  the  command  of  man  ; 
because  man  is,  in  turn,  obedient  to  the  command  of  God. 
Then  came  sin  ;  and  all  this  fair  order  is  spoiled.  All  that  God 
intended  ;  all  that  God  designed — worthy  of  His  wisdom — 
worthy  of  His  power — is  ruined.  The  fair  things  of  God  are 
destroyed  by  sin. 

The  first  consequence  of  sin  was  the  separation  between  God 
and  man.  God  left  him  ;  for  God  will  not  converse  with  the 
sinner.  The  second  consequence  of  sin — the  loss  of  truth,  of 
knowledge,  of  the  intelligence  of  man  ;  for  a  cloud  of  darkness 
and  of  error  settled  down  upon  that  mind,  so  illuminated,  so 
bright  before.  The  third  consequence  of  sin  was  the  complete 
revolution  in  man  himself,  and  the  world  around  him  ;  and  as  he 
revolted  against  heaven,  now  comes  the  uprising  of  the  angry 
passions,  lustful  desires,  vain,  foolish  curiosity,  begetting  uneasy 
thoughts.  Then  he  is  no  longer  able  to  command  those  thoughts 
to  begone,  to  molest  him  not.  Every  passion  arises  to  assert 
its  will ;  and  he,  who  a  moment  before  was  lord  of  all  things, 
now,  indeed,  possesses  some  inheritance,  but,  in  the  language  of 
the  poet,  it  is  "  a  heritage  of  woe."  Going  forth  from  his  home 
— driven  from  the  Garden  of  Paradise,  and  from  its  delights  ; 
every  creature  now  rises  up  in  rebellion  against  him.  No  longer 
will  the  winged  creature  of  the  air  come  at  his  command,  but  far 
on  high  over  his  head  circles  the  fierce  vulture,  looking  upon  the 
lord  of  creation  as  his  possible  prey.  Suddenly,  in  his  path,  the 
deadly  snake  hisses,  and  rises  to  strike  him.  The  lion  and  the 
tiger  war  with  him  from  their  lair.  All  nature  revolts  !  Behold 
the  ruin — behold  the  order  of  God's  law,  destroyed  by  the  sin 
of  man. 

Then,  after  four  thousand  years,  God,  the  eternal  son  of  God, 
came  down  from  heaven,  upon  the  wings  of  His  mercy,  to  make 
all  things  good  again  ;  to  restore  all  that  Adam  lost ;  to  make 
perfect  the  order  that  was  deranged.  All  that  man  lost  in  Adam 
was  restored,  and  more  than  restored,  in  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son 
of  God,  made  man.  First  of  all.  He  brought  from  heaven  that 
which  Adam  had  lost  by  sin,  the  presence  of  God ;  for,  "  His 
name  was  called  Emanuel,  which  means,  God  with  us."  Sec- 
ond, He  brought  from  heaven  the  light  complete  in  the  fullness 
of  divine  truth;  for,  "  in  Him  was  the  life,  and  the  life  was  the 


39^  The  Position  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope. 

light  of  men."  Third,  He  brought  from  heaven  the  light,  com- 
plete in  the  fullness  of  divine  and  magnificent  order,  that  was 
thoroughly  destroyed  in  Adam's  sin  ;  so  that  God  and  man  were 
united  b}-  a  union  far  more  intimate  than  the  union  that  was 
spoiled  by  Adam ;  for  in  Adam  was  ruined  only  the  mortal 
union  between  God  and  man ;  that  union  was  restored  by  the 
personal  union  in  which  God  and  human  nature  became  one 
person,  and  in  that  person  was  the  divine  light  of  knowledge 
and  of  truth.  What  was  lost  to  us  by  Adam's  sin,  was  more 
than  restored  to  us  in  the  sacred  humanity  of  Jesus  Christ ;  for 
in  him  flowed  the  fullness  of  the  divinity — all  light,  all  knowl- 
edge was  in  Him  ;  and  the  order  that  was  deranged  and  de- 
stroyed in  Adam  was  more  than  restored  in  Jesus  Christ.  In 
Him  and  by  Him  all  those  passions  were  completely  governed  ; 
humanity  and  divinity  were  united  in  Christ,  who  was  God. 
Man's  human  intelligence  receives  from  His  divinity  all  the  ef- 
fulgence of  His  light  and  knowledge  ;  and  his  affections  receive 
from  His  divinity  all  their  tenderness  and  all  their  infinite  power. 
At  this  day  we  see  how  Adam  sinned  ;  and  we  see  the  fallen  rise 
again,  upheld  by  the  grace  given  to  govern  demons,  through  the 
Virgin's  Son,  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 

Now,  my  friends,  you  rise  at  once  to  behold  before  your 
minds  the  grand  and  magnificent  design  of  God.  Christ,  the 
Son  of  God — coming  down  from  heaven,  and  remaining  upon 
the  earth — came  not  for  a  day,  nor  for  a  year ;  not  for  one  peo- 
ple, nor  for  one  time ; — but,  as  He  Himself  declared.  He  came 
to  remain  forever ;  to  build  up  a  perfect  people  ;  to  give  to  all 
men  the  power  to  be  what  He  was.  "  He  gave  them  the 
power  to  be  made  the  sons  of  God."  How  was  this  done? 
All  the  grace  of  Jesus  Christ — all  the  glory  that  surrounded 
Him,  He  left  with  His  Church.  He  founded  His  Church  to  be 
the  mother,  the  parent,  the  protector  of  the  world  ;  the  creator 
of  that  perfect  society  destroyed  in  Adam,  which  He  brought 
back  to  earth  again  in  the  Son  of  God  made  man. 

In  His  Church,  therefore,  must  you  look  to  find  the  same 
order,  the  same  beauty,  the  same  truth  that  we  find  in  our  di- 
vine Lord  and  Saviour.  In  order  to  effect  this,  Christ,  our 
Lord,  declared  that  He  would  never  leave  His  Church ;  that 
He  would  never  turn  aside  from  her  ;  never  allow  her  to  take 
one  step  but  by  His  guidance  ;  never  allow  the  world  to  impede 


The  Position  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope.  397 

her  progress ;  but  she  was  to  be  animated  by  His  grace,  and 
guided  by  His  counsels  ;  for  He  declared  Himself  to  be  the 
abiding  Head  of  His  holy  Church.  For,  says  St.  Paul,  "  Christ 
is  the  head,  as  the  Church  is  the  body."  Therefore,  my  breth- 
ren, we  speak  of  Him  as  the  Head  of  the  Church,  not  as  we 
speak  of  the  Church  as  being  the  head,  in  a  sense,  as  the  father 
is  the  head  of  a  family.  No ;  but  we  speak  of  her  head  as  in 
the  organization  of  a  human  body.  Wherefore,  the  apostle 
says:  "  Christ  is  the  head  of  the  body  of  the  Church."  Now, 
when  the  whole  body  is  compacted,  making  it  increase  unto 
charity,  it  is  because  of  His  friendship  and  affection  over  the 
body  of  that  Church.  He  abides  in  that  Church ;  He  has  given 
to  her — He  has  set  upon  the  shoulders  of  that  human  body — 
the  head  of  the  wisest  philosopher — and  all  that  the  body  re- 
ceives, the  mighty,  singular  intelligence,  the  glory  He  has  given 
to  her,  shines  forth  in  her  words  of  wisdom. 

The  great  intellect,  the  power  which  flows  from  the  lips  set 
upon  the  body  of  the  divine  heart  for  the  whole  body,  becomes 
divine  through  the  head.  Thus  it  is  that  the  Church — through 
the  fullness  of  the  grace  of  her  divine  Head  and  founder — all 
that  she  teaches  is  the  truth  of  God.  The  knowledge,  the  light 
of  God,  the  order  of  God,  shines  forth  in  the  holy  Catholic 
Church.  In  heaven,  where  the  Church  is  triumphant,  where 
they  see  even  as  they  are  seen,  Christ  is  the  visible  Head  of  His 
Church.  On  earth — where  we  cannot  see  Him  with  our  corpo- 
ral eyes,  He  has  appointed  a  viceroy,  and  He  commands  us  to 
hear  his  voice,  for  His  viceroy  is  under  His  influence  and  feels 
and  experiences  the  touch  of  His  divine  and  guiding  hand. 
The  Son  of  God  governs  His  Church,  through  its  visible  head; 
and  that  visible  head  of  the  Church,  from  the  day  that  Christ 
gave  the  keys  to  Peter,  down  to  this  hour,  when  the  aged  man 
in  Rome  holds  the  keys — that  head  of  the  Church  has  been  the 
glorious  Pope. 

When  the  Son  of  God,  like  a  divine  architect,  devised  the 
foundation  of  His  Church — He  united  in  her  all  that  she  was  to 
have.  He  began  by  taking  a  man  ;  and  He  conferred  upon  that 
man  three  most  wonderful  graces,  privileges,  and  powers,  each 
and  every  one  of  which  is  proved  in  Scripture  in  language  as 
clear  as  noon-day,  and  as  emphatic  in  character  as  if  the  sal- 
vation of  man  depended  upon  it  (as  in  reality  it  does).     The 


398  The  Position  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope. 

man  that  was  chosen  was  Peter,  one  of  the  twelve  apostles. 
He  was  not  the  most  perfect  amongst  them.  He  was  a  man 
who  had,  in  the  beginning,  before  the  holy  spirit  of  God  came 
upon  him,  many  defects  of  nature,  as  I  suppose  we  all  have. 
He  was  a  man  of  naturally  impulsive  character,  and  yet  not  very 
constant  in  disposition,  before  the  Almighty  poured  out  upon 
him  the  fullness  of  His  holy  Spirit.  We  might,  perhaps,  if  ive 
had  the  choice,  have  fixed  upon  the  young  virgin,  St.  John  ;  or 
we  might  take  his  elder  brother  James  ;  or  we  might  choose 
some  other  of  the  apostles.  But  we  had  not  the  choice  ;  Christ 
had  ;  and  Christ  chose  Peter.  What  were  the  gifts,  special  and 
personal,  that  He  gave  to  Peter?  They  were  precisely  the 
three  things  that  were  necessary  in  order  to  leave  Peter  behind 
Him  upon  the  earth  as  His  worthy  representative,  and  the  visi- 
ble head  of  the  Church.  He  gave  him,  first  of  all,  clearly  and 
emphatically,  the  appointment  to  be  His  vicar  and  viceroy  in 
the  government  of  His  Church.  Second,  He  gave  him  the 
power,  the  obligation,  of  supreme  pastor  or  shepherd  of  the 
whole  Church.  Third,  He  made  him  the  immovable  rock  upon 
which  His  Church  was  to  be  founded — built,  with  the  power  of 
divine  strength — against  which  every  storm  of  persecution  and 
every  power  of  hell  should  exhaust  itself  forever,  but  forever  in 
vain.  By  making  him  His  viceroy,  by  this  fact,  Christ,  our 
Lord,  the  Son  of  God,  gave  to  Peter  every  participation  of  His 
own  power  in  the  government  of  the  Church.  By  making  him 
supreme  pastor  of  the  flock,  with  the  very  word  that  cometh 
from  the  mouth  of  God,  He  made  him  the  infallible  exponent 
of  the  Church's  doctrines  on  earth.  By  making  him  the  rock 
upon  which  the  Church  is  built,  He  made  him  the  unfailing 
voice  of  that  Church  forever.  As  viceroy  of  God,  he  commands 
our  obedience,  as  the  Lord  will  command  it  as  supreme  pastor. 
He  commands  the  allegiance  of  our  intellects  and  the  love  of 
our  hearts.  As  the  rock  set  in  Christ — imbedded  in  the  Master, 
never  to  be  moved — he  commands  that  confidence  of  hope  un- 
shaken, that  free,  simple,  truthful  confidence  that  is  never  dis- 
turbed by  a  single  doubt,  which  every  Catholic  feels  he  has  when 
it  is  a  question  of  the  destiny  or  future  of  the  Pope  of  Rome. 
Now,  my  friends,  I  must  ask  you  to  have  a  little  patience  with 
me  while  I  illustrate  as  clearly  and  as  emphatically  as  I  can — I 
must  prove  these  things ;  because  in  this  world  nowadays,  no 


The  Position  and  "Privileges  of  the  Pope,  399 

one  expects  to  believe  on  mere  assertion  without  proof.  I  as- 
sert, first  of  all,  that  the  Son  of  God  made  St.  Peter  His  viceroy. 
He  commissioned  him  over  all  things  as  the  Head  of  His  Church. 
He  made  Peter  His  visible  head  and  His  representative.  He 
said  to  him,  as  recorded  in  the  Gospel :  "  Blessed  art  thou,  Si- 
mon Bar-Jona,  I  will  give  to  thee  the  keys  of  the  Kingdom  of 
Heaven.  Whatever  thou  shalt  bind  upon  earth  shall  be  bound 
also  in  heaven  :  and  whatsoever  thou  shalt  loose  upon  earth 
shall  be  loosed  also  in  heaven."  Reflect  on  the  power  of  these 
words.  First  of  all,  they  were  spoken  to  Peter  in  the  presence 
of  the  other  apostles ;  these  words  were  not  to  the  others,  but 
to  Peter — to  Peter  precisely — to  Peter  individually.  What  did 
He  mean  in  this  exclamation  ?  We  read  that  our  Lord  is  de- 
scribed as  "  the  Faithful  One,"  the  "  true  Man  who  openeth  and 
no  man  shutteth."  It  was  shut — the  door  of  heaven  ;  and  He 
alone  was  able  to  insert  the  key  and  by  His  power  to  roll  back 
that  door.  This  He  meant  by  His  exclamation.  It  is  the 
power  of  Peter,  by  the  inspiration  of  God  ;  for  it  is  precisely  the 
power  and  privilege  of  Christ.  Now,  when  I  find  one  part  of 
Scripture  explaining  and  telling  me  that  this  is  the  individual 
attribute  of  our  Lord,  to  hold  the  key,  "  to  open  and  no  man 
shutteth  ; "  when  I  find  that  same  Lord  talking  to  Peter 
in  the  presence  of  all  His  apostles,  saying  to  him,  "  Thou  art 
blessed  amongst  the  sons  of  men.  To  thee  will  I  give  the  keys 
of  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven.  Whatsoever  thou  shalt  bind  shall 
be  bound  ;  " — I  ask  you  is  it  not  as  clear  as  human  language  can 
convey  it,  that  Christ,  by  that,  intended  to  make  that  man  His 
representative. 

Peter,  therefore,  after  the  ascension  of  our  Lord,  was  intended 
by  Him  to  be  His  representative;  he  was  the  viceroy  of  Christ. 
What  does  this  mean  ?  My  friends,  when  a  king  appoints  a 
viceroy,  he  does  not  renounce  his  crown  ;  he  does  not  give  up 
his  throne  ;  he  is  as  much  king  as  ever ;  he  simply  confers  all 
his  power  and  all  his  authority  upon  the  person  to  whom  he 
gives  that  power.  He  calls  upon  the  people,  his  subjects,  to 
accept  his  viceroy  as  they  accept  himself ;  the  laws  the  viceroy 
makes  are  considered  to  be  made  in  the  name  of  the  king,  and 
by  the  power  of  the  king.  He  is  supposed  to  interpret  the 
commands  of  the  monarch  ;  his  acts  are  interpreted  as  the  acts 
of  the  king.     If  a  subject  disobeys  or  rebels  against  him,  that 


400  The  Position  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope. 

subject  will  be  considered  as  a  traitor  against  his  monarch. 
This  is  the  clearest  idea  of  a  viceroy,  the  representative  of  a 
supreme  ruler.  If  it  is  so  in  human  affairs,  so,  in  the  divine 
Church  of  God,  Peter,  as  viceroy,  is  king  himself  in  office  in  all 
that  regards  the  government  of  the  Church ;  in  all  that  regards 
her  laws,  her  morality,  Peter  is  Christ  in  office,  Christ  in  juris- 
diction, Christ  before  man.  As,  in  the  case  of  a  viceroy,  the 
seal  of  the  monarch  is  set  upon  his  every  act,  so,  upon  every  act 
of  Peter  is  set  the  seal,  the  authority  of  Christ. 

What  follows  from  this  ?  It  follows,  in  plain,  simple  language, 
that  the  Church  is  bound  to  obey  Peter  as  she  is  bound  to  obey 
Christ,  our  Lord,  as  if  He  were  before  her.  It  follows  that 
Peter  is  as  little  likely  to  deceive  the  Church  as  the  Son  of  God 
would  be  to  deceive  her.  It  follows  that,  if  the  Church  of  God 
is  declared  by  Christ,  our  Lord,  to  be  infallible — never  to  be 
obliged  to  believe  a  lie  ;  never  to  be  called  upon  to  accept  any- 
thing unholy,  in  faith  or  in  morals — it  follows  that,  if  Peter  be 
viceroy  of  Christ,  the  Church  is  bound  to  accept  his  teaching, 
and  that,  in  the  government  of  that  Church,  Peter  cannot  err  in 
faith  nor  in  morals.  Remember  ;  let  me  define  precisely  what 
I  mean.  Peter  cannot  err  in  faith,  when  he  acts  as  viceroy  of 
Christ ;  that  is  to  say,  when  he  speaks  authoritatively,  or,  as  the 
theologians  put  it,  "  ex  cathedral  When  he  speaks  as  viceroy 
of  God  we  are  bound  to  believe  and  to  obey,  for  we  take  that 
as  the  infallible  declaration  of  Christ,  the  Lord  of  eternal  truth. 
He  said  the  Church  itself  can  never  believe,  nor  be  made  to 
believe,  a  lie.  When  I  say  Peter  represents  Christ  in  holiness 
and  morality,  I  do  not  mean  for  an  instant  to  say  that  the  Pope 
cannot  commit  sin ;  this  is  not  my  meaning ;  he  has  human 
frailties  ;  he  may  commit  sin  ;  don't  we  all  do  so  ?  But  what  I 
say  is,  that  he  cannot  preach  error  or  propound  to  the  Church 
anything  false  in  doctrine  or  unholy  in  moral  obligation.  That 
sanctity  of  the  Church,  that  morality  and  beauty  that  make  her 
the  spouse  of  Christ — the  glory  and  sanctity  of  His  spouse, 
which  He  set  upon  her — was  in  Peter's  hands,  to  guard  her,  to 
never  doubt  the  unfailing  strength  and  truth  of  His  promise — 
so,  he  cannot  teach  her  a  lie  ;  he  cannot  teach  her  anything  un- 
holy in  her  morality. 

What  I  claim  for  Peter  belongs  also  to  Pius.     After  many 
years  of  incessant  toil — in  his  old  age,  when  he  had  "  fought  the 


The  Position  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope.  401 

good  fight,"  and  conquered  the  world — Peter,  the  head  of  the 
Church  in  Rome,  was  led  one  morning  up  the  steep  sides  of  the 
Janiculum  (one  of  the  seven  hills  of  the  "  Eternal  City  ").  Then 
the  aged  man,  bowed  in  years  and  with  infirmities,  was  stripped 
of  his  garments  ;  he  was  nailed  to  a  cross  ;  and,  weeping, — not 
for  himself,  but  because  he  remembered  the  scene  of  Jerusalem, 
when  his  Lord  and  Master  was  nailed  to  a  cross — -when  they 
asked  the  old  man  had  he  any  request  to  make  before  he  died, 
he  said  :  "  There  was  One  crucified  upon  a  hill  outside  of  Jeru- 
salem ;  His  head,  crowned  with  thorns,  was  lifted  up  into  the 
air,  worthily,  as  the  Head  of  the  world  ;  for  He  was  God.  I  am 
not  worthy,"  he  said,  "  to  die  like  my  Lord  and  Master.  I  only 
ask  you,  when  you  have  nailed  me  to  the  cross,  to  let  my  head 
be  turned  towards  the  earth,  as  a  poor,  miserable  sinner ;  a  child 
of  earth  ;  and  a  worm  thereof."  Thus  died  Peter,  upon  one  of 
the  hills  of  Rome.  Rome  crucified  her  first  Pope.  When  Peter 
passed  away,  the  succession  passed  to  Linus,  from  him  to  Cle- 
tus,  from  him  to  Clement,  who  became  all  that  Peter  was». 
Peter  was  the  head  of  the  Church  ;  all  that  Christ  had  given  to. 
him,  he  gave  to  them  for  the  government  of  His  Church. 
Peter  died  ;  the  Church  lived  on.  Therefore,  Peter's  successor 
inherited  all  his  privileges.  All  that  was  given  to  him,  the  keys, 
the  golden  chain,  the  apostolic  succession,  the  concentration  of 
the  power  of  truth  and  jurisdiction — have  gone  down  from  link 
to  link.  The  chain  that  Christ  held  in  His  hand,  and  of  which 
He  gave  the  first  link  to  Peter,  is  still  on  the  earth ;  and 
Pius  IX.,  in  Rome,  holds  the  latest  link  of  that  chain  in  his  hand. 
The  second  privilege  that  God  gave  to  Peter,  for  His  Church 
— consequently  to  Pius — was  the  obligation;  to  feed  the  lambs, 
to  feed  the  sheep ;  in  other  words,  the  power  of  supreme  pastor. 
Now,  mark  here !  what  astonishes  me  is  the  weakness  of  man's 
intellect  to  deny  these  things  after  this  revelation.  After  the 
resurrection,  when  He  had  arisen  at  Jerusalem,  Christ,  our  Lord, 
appeared  to  His  apostles.  Now,  remember,  the  Gospel  clearly 
tells  us  that  He  gave  to  those  twelve  apostles  all  the  power  and 
jurisdiction  that  they  were  free  to  exercise — the  power  to  bap- 
tize, the  power  to  preach,  the  power  to  forgive  sin,  the  power 
to  consecrate  the  bread  and  wine  into  His  body  and  blood. 
Full  power,  before  He  left  this  world,  He  had  conferred  upon 
them.     Now  He  came  ;  He  stood  before  them ;  they  all  kneel 

26 


402  The  Position  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope, 

round  their  Master.  He  is  the  Truth.  He  speaks  to  Peter  ; 
He  calls  him  forth,  first  of  all.  The  Master  says  to  him  :  "  Si- 
mon Peter,  I  have  something  to  say  to  you  ;  tell  Me,  do  you 
love  Me  more  than  these  other  men  love  Me?"  What  a 
strange  question  to  ask,  when  John  the  Evangelist,  the  apostle 
of  love,  was  there  !  "  Lovest  thou  Me,  O,  Peter,  more  than 
these?  "  And  Peter  said  :  "  O  Lord,  Thou  knowest  that  I  love 
Thee."  There  was  a  terrible  pause ;  the  eyes  of  the  Redeemer 
pierced  Peter's  soul.  Again  He  spoke  :  "  O  Peter,  lovest  thou 
Me  more  than  these?"  The  astonished  apostle  again  an- 
swered :  "  Master,  Thou  knowest  that  I  love  Thee."  Another 
pause,  more  terrible  still.  "  Simon  Peter,"  He  said,  "  lovest 
thou  Me  more  than  all  these?"  Peter  burst  into  tears,  and  he 
said:  "O  Lord,  O  Christ,  Thou  knowest  all  things  ;  and  Thou 
knowest  that  I  love  Thee ! "  Then  the  Master  said  to  him  : 
"  Feed  My  lambs  ;  feed  My  sheep."  Now,  I  ask  you,  what  did 
Christ  mean  ?  It  would  be  blasphemy  for  me  to  say  that  He 
meant  nothing.  If  He  meant  anything,  that  thing  that  He 
meant  was  something  expressly  to  be  conferred  on  Peter.  He 
had  already  given  to  him  all  the  power  that  belonged  to  him  as 
an  apostle,  in  common  with  the  others.  Peter  had  already 
heard  from  the  Lord  every  word  that  was  spoken  to  Philip, 
James,  John,  and  the  others.  Therefore,  if  He  meant  to  give 
him  anything  new,  it  was  something  beyond  what  belonged  to 
the  other  apostles.  Now,  what  was  that  thing?  Christ  in- 
tended to  make  him  the  head  of  all ;  and,  consequently,  the 
supreme  pastor  of  His  Church.  Nothing  else  was  reserved  for 
Peter,  if  the  words  of  Christ  meant  anything ;  for  He  said  : 
"  Feed  My  lambs;  feed  My  sheep." 

Let  us  follow  Peter  throughout  the  subsequent  years  of  his 
life.  Read  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles ;  read  the  Gospel ;  read 
the  early  history  of  the  Church ;  and  you  will  find  that  Peter 
was  invariably  addressed  by  his  fellow-apostles  as  the  head  and 
supreme  ruler  of  the  Church  of  God.  When  St.  Paul  was  con- 
verted, when  he  received,  mysteriously,  that  reclaiming  grace 
for  his  apostleship — he  went  up  to  Jerusalem,  he  himself  ex- 
pressly tells  us,  to  see  Peter.  Afterwards,  we  read  that,  when 
St.  Paul  and  St.  Barnabas,  both  apostles,  were  in  difficulties  in 
Antioch,  they  came  to  Jerusalem  to  see  Peter,  and  to  get  Peter's 
decision.     When  St.  James  was  in  prison — when  Herod  was 


The  Position  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope.  403 

preparing  for  his  terrible  martyrdom — the  Church  grieved  as 
she  would  grieve  to-day  for  a  cardinal  or  an  archbishop.  But, 
oh,  when  Peter  was  in  prison,  the  whole  Church  put  up  prayers 
of  anxiety  without  intermission,  because  the  whole  Church 
recognized  in  him  the  supreme  pastor — the  representative  of 
Christ — the  Pope. 

Christ's  word  to  Peter  was  the  greatest  and  most  singular 
privilege  of  all.  Peter  was  the  "  Rock."  He  himself  form- 
ing the  foundation  of  that  Church,  as  it  is  written  in  Scrip- 
ture, that  He  founded  His  Church  upon  a  foundation  of 
prophets  and  apostles.  He  Himself,  Jesus  Christ,  being  the 
great  corner-stone.  Christ  is  the  immovable  foundation,  im- 
movable in  sanctity,  immovable  in  truth.  But,  as  He,  this 
Supreme  Pastor,  appoints  Peter  to  represent  him  as  the  visible 
head,  so  He,  this  Supreme  Pastor,  deputed  Peter  to  feed  the 
flock ;  so  also  Christ,  the  real  foundation  of  the  Church,  took 
to  Him  Peter,  and  imbedded  Peter  in  Himself.  Therefore,  He 
said  :  "  Thou  art  Peter.  Upon  this  rock  will  I  build  my  Church  ; 
and  the  gates  of  hell  shall  never  prevail  against  her."  Now, 
my  friends,  let  us  suppose  for  an  instant  that  Peter  is  able  to 
lead  the  Church  astray.  Let  us  suppose  that  Peter — that  is  to 
say,  Pius — is  now  to  propound  something  false  in  doctrine,  some- 
thing unholy  in  morality,  and  asks  the  Church  to  accept  that,  if 
that  were  possible.  The  very  man  who  would  lead  the  Church 
astray  was  the  man  who  was  appointed  to  govern  her  as  viceroy 
of  God.  Now,  the  only  means,  the  power  that  he  would  have 
whereby  to  lead  the  Church  into  error,  would  be  precisely  the 
very  power  which  he  received  from  Christ.  Remember,  the 
Pope  teaches  the  universal  Church  ;  the  Pope  speaks  to  the 
whole  Church,  as  the  vicar  of  God.  As  Bishop  of  Rome  he  may 
address  his  diocese ;  but  in  this  case  he  does  not  speak  as  the 
Pope.  As  a  learned  man,  taking  an  interest  in  science,  if  he 
reads  the  papers,  he  may  give  his  opinion  of  electricity  or  of 
anything  else.  As  a  politician,  he  may  prefer  this  form  of  gov- 
ernment or  that.  In  none  of  these  does  he  act  as  Pope.  He 
acts  in  virtue  of  the  power  of  Christ  only  when  he  defines  texts 
for  governing  the  Church ;  and  then  he  speaks  to  the  whole 
Church  of  God,  defining  the  Church's  truth,  commanding  and 
enforcing  the  Church's  morality  and  law.  If,  by  any  act,  he  was 
capable  of  deluding  her,  then  that  lie  would  come  forth  in  virtue 


404  The  Position  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope. 

and  by  the  very  authority  and  power  that  he  gets  from  a  God 
of  eternal  and  essential  truth.  Can  any  man  in  his  soul  believe 
it  ?  Can  any  man  be  so  blind  as  not  to  see  that,  because,  as 
viceroy  of  God,  he  speaks  in  virtue  of  the  authority  of  Jesus 
Christ,  no  word  can  come  from  that  man's  lips  but  the  Word  of 
God's  eternal  and  essential  truth  ?  For,  as  pastor  of  the  Church, 
he  is  bound  thereby  to  guide  the  flock  into  the  healthy  pastur- 
age— bound  to  provide  us  with  food  for  our  souls — which  is 
Christian  doctrine  and  Christian  grace.  And  were  it  in  the 
power  of  the  Pope  to  administer  to  us  a  doctrine  of  error  or  of 
falsehood,  does  it  not  follow  that  the  very  hand  that  fed  us — 
that  fed  us  in  the  power  of  Jesus  Christ — would  be  the  hand 
that  would  destroy  us  ?  "  Who  is  there  amongst  you,"  says 
our  Lord,  in  the  Gospel,  "  who,  if  his  child  asks  him  for  bread, 
will  give  him  a  stone  ?  Who,  if  his  child  asks  for  a  fish,  will 
give  him  a  serpent  ? "  If  the  Pope  could  teach  falsehood, 
we  might  answer,  "O  Christ!  there  is  but  one  man  can  do 
this  ;  and  that  is  the  very  man  whom  You  Yourself  have  ap- 
pointed to  lead  Your  Church,  to  guide  the  flock  with  words  of 
truth  and  sanctity  until  the  end  of  time."  But  the  Pope — the 
head  of  the  Church — cannot  force  us  into  error  or  heresy.  He 
is  the  representative  that  Christ  left  upon  the  earth  to  guard 
His  Church,  in  order  that  she  might  remain  forever,  in  order 
that  she  might  defy  all  the  powers  of  hell,  in  order  that  she 
might  resist  all  the  storms  of  time,  in  order  that  she  might 
remain  in  all  her  majestic  beauty,  the  spouse  of  Christ, 
the  citadel  of  God.  If  the  Pope  can  teach  error,  the  very  rock 
upon  which  the  Church  was  founded  is  shattered,  destroyed, 
and  broken  into  pieces.  You  have  heard  of  the  foolish  man 
who  built  his  house  upon  sand,  and  the  rain  fell,  and  the  floods 
came,  and  the  winds  blew,  and  they  beat  upon  that  house  and 
threw  it  down.  Why  ?  Because  it  was  founded  upon  sand. 
But  the  wise  man  built  his  house  upon  a  rock.  The  storm 
arose  and  the  wind  beat  upon  that  house ;  but  it  moved  not, 
because  it  was  founded  upon  a  rock.  But,  if  the  rock  itself 
moves,  if  the  rock  itself  is  shaken  by  error,  how  will  the  house 
remain  standing?  How  foolish,  therefore,  is  the  thought  of 
those  who  imagine  that  the  darkness  of  error,  the  spirit  of  in- 
iquity, shall  shake  or  undermine  that  foundation  that  He,  the 
eternal  God,  set  in  Peter,  the  immovable  rock,  upon  which  His 
Church  is  built. 


The  Position  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope.  405 

I  think,  my  friends,  that  we  have  sufficiently  proved  the 
power  of  the  Pope  and  his  privileges,  as  defined  in  Scripture  ; 
but  I  engage  to  do  more  than  this  for  you  this  evening.  I  en- 
gage to  show  you  how  these  self-same  privileges,  namely,  the 
supreme  government,  the  infallible  guidance  which  we  have 
seen  foreshadowed  so  clearly  in  Scripture,  and  in  the  history  of 
Rome — especially  the  history  of  the  Church — that  what  Christ 
said  and  what  Christ  did  for  Peter,  have  been  carried  on  by 
Peter,  and  Peter's  successors,  for  more  than  eighteen  hundred 
years.  Now,  to  prove  this.  The  first  great  transaction  that  we 
have  recorded,  after  the  ascension  of  our  Lord,  is  the  council 
that  was  called  at  Jerusalem.  We  have  heard  of  the  little  diffi- 
culty that  occurred  to  Sts.  Paul  and  Barnabas  in  their  mission 
at  Antioch.  St.  Paul  went  up  to  Antioch,  and  with  him  he 
brought  St.  Barnabas ;  for,  while  he  was  preaching  the  Gospel, 
certain  of  the  Jewish  people  came  and  received  the  truth  from 
St.  Paul,  but  insisted  on  their  own  idea  of  the  Gospel,  that  all 
should  observe  the  old  law.  The  subject  is  almost  too  serious 
to  be  treated  with  anything  like  levity,  yet  those  Jews  were  very 
like  the  sectarians  of  the  present  day,  interpreting  every  obser- 
vance of  the  old  law  ;  making  it  a  terrible  crime  for  a  man  to 
wash  his  hands  on  Sunday  ;  crying  out,  in  their  virtuous  hypoc- 
risy, for  the  observance  of  the  old  law.  It  is  one  of  this  kind 
of  people  of  whom  the  poet  amusingly  said,  that 

"  He  hanged  his  cat  on  Monday 
For  killing  a  rat  on  Sunday." 

Now,  St.  Paul  did  not  know  how  to  deal  with  these  men. 
What  did  he  do?  He  came  to  Jerusalem,  where  St.  Peter  then 
was.  He  laid  the  matter  before  the  apostles,  in  council  there 
assembled.  Now,  remember  that  the  council  was  held  in  Jeru- 
salem ;  that  St.  James,  the  apostle,  was  Bishop  of  Jerusalem, 
and,  therefore,  had  a  right,  unless  Peter  was  something  greater 
than  he  was,  to  preside  at  that  council.  Paul  and  Barnabas 
came  and  laid  the  matter  before  the  apostles.  Peter  was  there. 
After  much  discussion  Peter  arose,  and  he  said:  "Men  and 
brethren,  you  know  that  in  former  days  God  made  choice 
amongst  us,  that  the  Gentiles  by  my  mouth  should  hear  the 
word  of  the  Gospel  and  believe.  And  He  made  no  difference 
between  us  and  them,  purifying  their  hearts  by  faith.  This  is 
the  law."     And  the  moment  Peter  spoke  every  man  in  that 


406  The  Position  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope. 

council  held  his  peace.  All  silence  was  there.  There  was  not 
another  word.  St.  James,  Bishop  of  Jerusalem,  promulgated 
Peter's  decree,  and  said:  "It  is  written;  Peter  speaks  (that 
is,  Christ)." 

Later  on,  we  find  St.  Ignatius  of  Antioch,  the  successor  of 
Peter  himself,  admitted  that  the  Roman  Church,  over  which 
Peter  presided  and  was  presiding — that  she  held  the  supreme 
See  over  all  the  other  churches.  Later  on,  we  find  St.  Irenaeus, 
disciple  of  St.  Polycarp,  in  the  year  177  came  to  Rome. 
Here  are  his  words:  "It  is  necessary  for  the  faithful 
of  every  country  to  conform  to  the  teachings  of  the  See 
of  Rome,  because  of  its  eminent  primacy,  in  which  has 
always  been  preserved  the  tradition  of  the  apostles.  The 
Church  of  Rome,"  he  adds,  "  is  acknowledged  to  be  the  supreme 
head,  with  whom  it  is  necessary  the  Church  everywhere  should 
agree."  Who  said  these  words  ?  The  man  who  was  actually 
acquainted  with  Polycarp,  and  who  received  his  authority  from 
St.  John  the  Evangelist,  and  he  was  the  man  that  lay  upon  our 
Lord's  bosom.  Here,  then,  is  the  eternal  link;  the  disciple  of 
John  says  :  "  Every  church — that  is  to  say,  the  faithful  of  the 
whole  world — ever  must  agree  with  the  Church  of  Rome,  for 
she  is  supreme  over  all  the  Church." 

Twenty  years  later,  we  find  evidence  of  another  kind.  One 
of  the  most  learned  doctors  of  the  Church,  a  priest  called  Ter- 
tullian,  fell  into  heresy.  He  disobeyed  the  Church  ;  he  refused 
to  believe  certain  doctrines  touching  the  remission  of  sin.  The 
unfortunate  man  was  excommunicated.  Now,  surely,  when  a 
man  of  that  kind  falls  under  the  censure  of  the  Church,  that  he 
believed  the  supremacy  of  the  Pope  proves  that  in  his  time 
every  one  believed  it.  He  never  appealed  ;  he  never  denied  it ; 
for  every  one  believed  it.  Tertullian  went  over  to  heresy,  he 
admitted  the  supreme  power  of  the  Pope,  although  he  didn't  be- 
lieve the  decision  of  Rome.  Consequently,  if  the  Pope  was  not 
more  than  ordinary  bishop,  he  would  have  nothing  to  say  to 
him.  But,  because  he  was  the  Pope,  Tertullian  was  excom- 
municated. Tertullian  himself,  writing  to  a  friend,  said :  "  I 
hear  that  a  solemn  decree  has  been  published.  The  bishop  of 
bishops  remits  certain  sins  for  those  who  will  do  penance."  The 
"  bishop  of  bishops,"  he  says; — with  evidence  from  such  a  source 
we  may  well  believe  the  power  of  the  Pope. 


The  Position  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope.  407 

We  have  also  the  evidence  of  writers  and  historians  to 
prove  that  the  power  and  supremacy  of  the  Pope  were  ad- 
mitted by  most  of  the  Protestants.  Martin  Luther,  when 
he  founded  Protestantism,  laid  down  this  example.  He 
said  :  "The  Catholic  Church  was  all  right  up  to  about  the  year 
608 ;  then  she  began  to  fall  into  error."  The  consequence  is, 
that  Luther  precisely  declared  that  the  first  six  great  Councils 
of  the  Catholic  Church  were  held  under  the  guidance  of  the  Holy 
Ghost. 

He  believed  that  the  Church  was  truth  itself,  for  he  already 
acknowledged  that  it  was  only  in  the  Middle  Ages  she  fell  into 
error,  and  that  then  she  began  to  talk  about  priests,  nuns, 
monks,  celibacy,  and  all  those  things.  But  as  far  as  the  sixth 
century  or  seventh  we  all  agree  that  the  Church  was  the  Church 
of  God,  Precisely  during  those  six  first  centuries  were  held  the 
six  great  councils.  Every  Protestant  historian  admits  that 
these  councils  were  under  the  influence  of  the  Holy  Ghost  ;  that 
the  Church  was  guided  by  the  Spirit  of  God  in  them.  The  first 
of  these  councils  was  held  in  the  year  325,  at  Nice.  Pope  Syl- 
vester sent  word  to  all  the  bishops  that  they  should  meet  on 
such  a  day.  It  is  admitted  by  all  that  that  council  was  a  great 
council  of  the  Church,  because  the  Pope  was  represented  there 
by  his  three  legates,  who  presided  at  that  council.  And  what 
do  you  think  did  the  bishops  do  ?  They  wrote  a  letter  to  the 
Pope  respecting  these  decrees,  calling  him  the  blessed  Roman 
Pontiff,  to  confirm  them  by  his  apostolic  authority.  Well  done, 
Luther!  Well  done,  Luther!  For  once  in  his  life  he  spoke 
the  truth  !  At  the  Council  of  Nice  the  Holy  Ghost  presided  ; 
the  Holy  Ghost  was  there.  The  Church  was  still  in  all  the 
grandeur  and  the  fullness  of  her  prime.  Not  one  word  from 
the  bishops,  until  the  old  man  in  Rome  took  his  position  on  the 
questions  at  issue ! 

Twenty  years  later  we  find  another  council  assembled  at 
Laodicea.  The  occasion  of  the  assembling  of  this  council  was, 
that  certain  bishops  in  the  East,  who  were  good  men,  zealous 
for  their  people ;  but,  through  jealousy  of  some  other  bishops, 
began  to  persecute  them,  and,  calling  a  council  together,  de- 
clared them  unworthy  to  govern  the  Church  of  God.  What  did 
the  bishops  ?  They  went  straight  to  Rome,  and  laid  the  mat- 
ter before  the   Pope — St,  Julius — who,  when  action  had  been 


408  The  Position  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope, 

taken,  found  that  these  were  good  men,  and  who  respected  the 
See ;  and,  as  a  consequence,  they  were  sent  to  their  respective 
Sees  from  which  they  had  been  ejected.  Therefore,  it  was 
agreed  that  every  bishop  had  a  right  to  appeal  to  Rome,  be- 
cause the  Pope  of  Rome  was  the  supreme  head  on  earth  over 
the  whole  Church.  Well  done,  Luther,  I  say  again !  You  may 
be  within  hearing  of  my  voice  to-night ;  perhaps  it  resounds  in 
your  ears  ! 

Twenty  years  later,  in  the  year  383,  a  blackguard  kind  of  a 
Mormon,  in  those  days,  who  came  from  Spain  to  Rome — he 
was  exactly  a  Mormon  ;  neither  more  nor  less — but  amongst 
other  things,  he  brought  with  him  a  bundle  of  old  books  that 
he  had  written  himself,  in  which  he  defended  some  false  gos- 
pels. The  Pope  looked  at  these,  and  at  once  became  satisfied, 
by  the  crimes  that  this  fellow  was  committing,  that  he  was  de- 
fending false  gospels  and  uninspired  writings.  And,  in  order  to 
set  the  matter  at  rest,  what  did  the  Pope  do  ?  He  condemn- 
ed this  man  in  order  to  save  the  people  and  the  Church  from 
the  danger  of  his  books.  The  Pope  wrote  a  letter  in  the 
year  383,  declaring  which  books  of  Scripture  were  inspired, 
and  which  books  were  spurious.  From  that  day  to  this, 
that  one  word  of  the  Pope  has  been  recognized  as  infal- 
lible truth,  defining  what  is  Scripture,  and  what  is  not ; 
not  a  voice  was  raised  against  it.  This  is  in  itself  sufficient 
to  prove  Papal  Infallibility.  But  Protestant  historians  say 
the  Pope  is  acknowledged  the  supreme  head ;  the  Pope  is 
respected  because  he  was  in  Rome,  which  was  the  primatial 
seat,  the  capital  of  the  Western  World.  If  the  Archbishop 
of  Paris  were  to  come  to  America,  he  certainly  does  not  regard 
the  Archbishop  of  New  York ;  he  regards  only  the  power 
that  is  vested  in  Rome.  Now,  my  friends,  to  prove  this.  In 
the  year  518,  Rome  was  in  ruins.  In  the  year  408,  the  King 
of  the  Visigoths  entered  Rome,  destroyed  the  whole  city, 
burned  and  ruined  everything,  and  banished  men,  women,  and 
children  ;  so  that  for  forty  days  the  sun  shone  upon  the  streets 
of  Rome  without  shedding  a  ray  upon  the  face  of  a  human  be- 
ing. Attila  and  Genseric  followed.  Rome  was  burned  three 
times.  The  barbarians  entered  Rome,  ravaged  and  destroyed 
it ;  in  a  word,  before  the  horde  of  barbarians  that  came  with 
Alaric,  until  the  time  of  Odoacer,  Rome  was  a  heap  of  ruins. 


The  Position  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope.  409 

The  very  time  that  Justin  was  Emperor  at  Constantinople, 
while  the  Eastern  Church  was  in  all  its  power,  the  Pope,  in 
Rome,  hadn't  as  much  as  a  house  wherein  to  lay  his  head. 
At  that  time,  as  God  would  have  it,  the  Eastern  Emperor, 
through  his  bishops,  sent  a  message  to  the  Pope  of  Rome, 
demanding  the  decision  of  his  jurisdiction.  By  it  the  schism, 
which  was  carried  on  amongst  them,  was  broken  up.  The 
Pope,  St.  Hormisdas,  wrote  a  circular  to  them,  telling  them 
what  they  would  have  to  believe,  according  to  the  Catholic 
Church,  before  he  would  have  anything  to  say  to  them.  The 
letter  was  sent  to  Constantinople.  There  was  the  Eastern  Em- 
peror upon  his  exalted  throne  ;  there  was  he,  surrounded  by 
his  noblemen,  by  his  clergy  and  his  great  army,  by  all  the  wealth 
and  grandeur  of  a  king,  ready  to  hear  and  abide  by  the  decision 
of  the  poor  old  man  in  Rome,  when  the  poor  old  man  had  not 
a  roof  over  his  head.  The  bishops  arose  like  one  man  ;  the 
people  arose  like  one  man,  and  cried  out :  "  This  is  the  truth  of 
the  Catholic  Church ;  because  Peter  has  spoken  through  his 
successor;  Christ  has  spoken  through  Peter." 

Where  is  the  use  of  multiplying  truth  ?  Let  us  go  over  to  the 
enemy's  camp.  Let  us  see  what  Protestants,  through  their 
Protestant  historians,  say  on  this  Catholic  point.  We  must  be- 
lieve the  greatest  Protestant  historian  that  ever  lived,  who,  at 
the  same  time,  though  profoundly  learned,  was  very  much  op- 
posed to  the  Catholic  Church.  He  was  a  German  named  Leib- 
nitz. Now,  what  does  this  man  say  when  he  had  occasion  to 
speak  of  the  faith  of  the  Church  in  the  Pope's  supreme  infalli- 
bility. Here  are  the  words:  "We  know  well,"  says  he,  "  that 
the  ancient  Councils  attest  that  the  Apostle  Peter  governed  the 
Church  from  Rome.  His  successors  resided  in  the  city  of  Rome, 
which  was  the  capital  of  the  world.  No  other  bishop  was  ever 
recognized  to  have  authority  over  the  body  of  the  Church." 
"  So,  justly,"  says  this  great  Protestant  historian,  "  that  the 
Bishop  of  Rome  is  the  chief  and  supreme  ruler  over  all  the  rest." 
Gibbon,  the  historian,  a  sneering  infidel,  one  who  never  missed 
an  opportunity  to  divert  history  from  every  high  purpose  by  the 
sin  of  infidelity,  says  :  "  No  reasonable  man  can  doubt  that  the 
Pope  of  Rome,  during  the  first  four  ages  of  Christianity,  was  ac- 
knowledged to  be  the  head  of  the  Catholic  Church."  Finally, 
let  me  turn  to  my  friend  and  former  brother  so  long  as  he  wore 


/ 

41  o  The  Position  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope. 

the  religious  habit,  as  long  as  he  was  faithful  to  his  vows — Mar- 
tin Luther.  Deposed  from  the  Church  early  in  the  sixteenth 
century,  one  of  the  first  things  he  did,  after  he  separated  from 
the  Church,  when  he  began  to  form  his  new  religion,  was  to  marry 
a  wife.  Well,  he  was  surrounded  by  a  great  many  learned  men  ; 
and  after  his  departure  six  or  seven  years,  he  found  that  Prot- 
estantism was  deficient  by  the  fault  of  its  founder  ;  for  each  one 
wanted  to  be  head  ;  and  they  were  forced  into  the  belief  that  the 
grandeur  of  their  new  religion  was  misunderstood.  And  so,  in 
the  year  1530,  Luther  and  Melancthon,  the  heads  of  the  Protest- 
ant factions,  came  together,  and  said :  "  This  thing  won't  do  ; 
better  go  back  to  the  Pope  again."  So  said  the  "  Reformers  " 
of  Germany,  Philip  Melancthon  and  Martin  Luther.  Luther 
put  himself  in  communication,  in  the  name  of  the  others,  with  the 
Pope  ;  and  what  do  you  think  he  said  ?  "  Holy  Father,  we  are 
ready  to  believe  your  voice  as  the  voice  of  Jesus  Christ."  These 
words  went  straight  to  Rome.  Now,  you  ask,  "  Why  did  they 
not  become  Catholics?"  Well,  my  friends,  they  would  not  do 
penance ;  and  the  women  were  in  the  way.  Yes,  they  said  they 
were  willing  to  believe  and  did  believe  everything,  and  declared 
it  in  that  little  note.  The  Pope  sent  them  word  that  they  could 
come  back;  that  all  should  come  back  and  do  penance,  and  not 
continue  their  scandal.  There  was  an  end  of  the  matter,  Lu- 
ther and  the  heretical  factions  remained.  He  declared  the 
voice  of  the  Pope  to  be  the  very  voice  of  Jesus  Christ.  No 
Catholic  priest  or  bishop  has  ever  pronounced  more  forcibly 
that  doctrine  of  faith  of  the  Church  than  Luther  did,  when  he 
said  these  words. 

Thus  follows  the  brightest  evidence,  from  the  pages  of  earliest 
history,  from  saint  and  sinner  ;  from  Catholic  and  Protestant ; 
from  believer  and  unbeliever  alike  ;  from  all,  swells  up  the  united 
chorus  of  truth  in  the  assertion  that  Peter,  and  Peter's  succes- 
sor, is  the  head  of  the  Church  of  God;  that  he  is  the  Pope  and 
supreme  ruler  ;  that  he  is  infallible,  and  that  he  cannot  lead  the 
Church  astray.  There  remains  that  quality  for  Peter  with  which 
our  Lord  invested  him  when  He  said :  "  Thou  art  Peter,  and 
upon  this  rock  will  I  build  my  Church."  On  every  side  Christ 
intended  to  found  that  which  was  for  the  perpetuity  of  His 
Church.  He  was  not  content  with  setting  upon  her  virgin  brow 
the  shining  crown,  immaculate  in  sanctity  ;  He  was  not  content 


The  Position  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope.  411 

with  leaving  upon  her  lips  the  message  of  truth,  unmixed  with 
a  single  shadow  of  error  ;  but  He  also  set  upon  her — He  breathed 
upon  her — His  own  life,  which  was  eternal,  immortality.  He  de- 
clared that  she  should  remain  forever,  in  spite  of  the  power  of 
earth,  in  spite  of  the  power  of  hell.  The  Church  of  God,  there- 
fore, is  not  only  all  truthful  in  her  teaching,  all  holy  in  morality ; 
but  she  must  remain  forever  with  this  truthfulness  as  immovable 
as  the  rock  upon  which  Christ  founded  her — that  rock  which  is 
Peter.     It  follows  from  this  that  she  cannot  lead  us  astray. 

I  may  judge  by  the  faces  before  me,  that  more  than  one  of  my 
hearers  has  come  from  the  dear  old  country — that  dear  "  green 
island,"  so  supernatural  in  her  instincts  ! — that  faithful  island, 
that  has  given  to  this  my  subject  the  grandest  and  most  infalli- 
ble testimony  of  all  the  nations  of  the  earth ! — that  nation  that 
suffered  for  three  hundred  and  fifty  long  years,  rather  than  sepa- 
rate from  the  rock  of  ages — the  Pope  of  Rome  ! — that  glorious 
Catholic  island  of  ours — that  blessed  and  holy  island,  that 
never,  for  fifteen  hundred  years — never  was  mistaken  in  her  in- 
stincts, even  when  the  whole  world  was  confused  by  the  appear- 
ance of  anti-popes.  It  is  a  singular  fact,  that  Ireland  and  the 
Irish  knew  by  a  kind  of  instinct  the  true  Pope  from  the  false 
Pope,  and  were  prepared  to  fight  for  him.  Italy  more  than 
once  mistook  the  anti-pope,  and  was  ready  to  sustain  the  anti- 
pope.  But  Ireland  never.  Even  when  England — Catholic 
England — was,  more  than  once,  led  away  by  the  arts  of  the 
anti-pope,  Ireland  always  found  out  the  true  pope,  by  a  kind  of 
instinctive  knowledge,  and  upheld  his  name,  and,  if  necessary, 
was  ready  to  shed  her  blood  to  save  her  faith.  To  you,  who 
come  from  that  blessed  soil,  perhaps,  my  friends,  it  is  one  of 
the  greatest  privileges  that  God  has  given  to  you,  and  to  me, 
perhaps,  the  greatest  of  all,  to  be  born  in  Ireland,  to  be  born  in 
a  land  impregnated  with  Catholicity  ;  to  be  born  of  a  people, 
though  poor,  I  will  add,  in  spite  of  her  natural  misfortunes,  the 
bravest  of  the  brave.  In  the  old  country  they  never  believed 
the  cry  which  was  raised  amongst  the  Protestants,  *'  Oh,  the 
Church  is  in  danger  ;  the  Catholic  Church  is  in  danger."  Some 
few  years  ago  a  Protestant  parson,  a  very  respectable  man — his 
church  was  in  Kilmainham,  the  place  where  Jimmy  O'Brien  was 
hanged  ; — in  that  sacred  and  venerated  spot,  this  decent  man — 
this  good  Protestant  clergyman — first  heard  very  surprising  news 


412  The  Positio7i  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope. 

— for  the  times  were  something  like  the  present.  The  cry  was 
raised  by  all  the  Protestant  papers  that  the  "  Church  was  in 
danger  ;  she  is  gone  at  last :  Oh,  the  Church  is  in  danger."  If 
a  Catholic  said  this  you  would  turn  around  and  say  to  him, 
"  My  friend,  you  must  have  lost  your  faith  ;  "  for  it  is  a  point  of 
Catholic  faith  that  the  Catholic  Church  can  never  be  in  danger, 
because  the  Son  of  God  is  with  her;  because  the  power  from  on 
high  is  with  her ;  because  the  rock  on  which  she  stands  is  as  un- 
shaken to-day  as  it  was  on  the  day  that  Christ  our  Lord  put  the 
keys  into  Peter's  hands  for  the  perpetuity  of  His  Church. 

The  question  is  raised,  Was  St.  Peter  ever  in  Rome  ?     Now, 
you  will  scarcely  believe  it.     The  men  of  this  age  of  ours,  who 
pretend  to  learning — who  boast  of  their  progress,  but,  blinded 
by  prejudice,  they  deny  that  St.  Peter  was  ever  in  Rome  in  his 
life.     Now,  if  any  of  these  men  wrote  to  prove  that  Napoleon 
was  not  at  the  battle  of  Waterloo,  or  that  the  English  were  de- 
feated at  Trafalgar,  that  neither  Washington  nor  Napoleon  ever 
existed  at  all,  or  any  other  absurdity  that  they  might  choose  to 
set  up,  you  might  believe  them ;  but  they  would  begin,  my 
friends,  to  prove  that  a  man's  grandfather  never  was  born  at  all  ; 
that  it  was  all  a  mistake.     So  these  men  have  begun  a  discus- 
sion, and  said  St.  Peter  never  was  in  Rome  in  his  life  !     St.  Pe- 
ter was  in  Rome  for  nearly  twenty-six  years.     The  first  years 
of  the  Christian  era  he  spent  in  Antioch.     We  know  that,  by 
the  order  of  the  Emperor  Claudius,  the  Jews  were  expelled 
from   Rome,   and   Peter  amongst  them.     He  went  straight  to 
Jerusalem  ;  but  before  Peter  left  Rome,  he  with  his  own   hands 
consecrated  St.  Linus,  St.  Cletus,  and,  it  is  believed,  St.  Clem- 
ent, in  order  to  govern  the  Church  in  his  absence.     How  well 
St.  Irenaeus  says  the  Church  of  Rome  was   founded  by  the  holy 
apostles,  Peter  and   Paul.     And,  at  this  hour,   two  thousand 
years  later,  there  are  men  who  deny  that  St.  Peter  ever  was  in 
Rome.     In  Rome  the  man  was  ;  in  Rome  he  suffered  ;  in  Rome 
he  was  in  prison  ;  in  Rome  he  was  crucified ;  in  Rome  he  fell 
into  the  power  of  his  enemies  ;  in  Rome  he  was  scourged   and 
put  to  death ;  in  Rome,  for  eighteen  hundred  years,  scenes  of 
every  hour  of  Peter's  life   and  sufferings  have   been  again  and 
again   reproduced  in    Peter's   successors.      They   come   before 
mine  eyes.     I  behold   them  with  the  eyes  of  my  memory  from 
Peter  to  Pius  IX. ;  but  scarcely  one  of  them  who  has  not  re- 


The  Position  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope.  413 

ceived  the  crown  of  martyrdom — that  crown  of  crowns — the 
type,  in  some  way  or  other,  of  the  tiara  that  crowned  his  pon- 
tifical brows.  I  see  them  in  the  three  hundred  years  of  the 
Church's  early  history,  lying  hidden  in  the  catacombs  of  Rome, 
governing  from  her  hidden  caves  the  whole  Catholic  world,  only 
waiting  day  after  day  in  the  sure  and  certain  expectancy,  until 
the  hand  of  the  Roman  soldier  is  laid  upon  them,  waiting  to  be 
thrust  into  prison,  and  cast  before  the  wild  beasts  of  the  amphi- 
theatre. I  see  them  before  me,  protecting  the  people  from  the 
fierce  monarchies  of  the  Middle  Ages  ;  settling  the  disputes  of 
the  petty  sovereigns.  I  see  them,  with  patience  more  than 
human,  regardless  of  their  own  injuries  or  wishes,  interpreting 
laws  for  the  wants,  for  the  necessities  of  society.  I  see  them 
reviled  and  insulted,  now  by  a  German  Emperor,  now  by  a 
domineering  King  of  France,  now  by  a  more  bloody  warrior 
coming  up  from  Sicily,  with  his  Norman  name,  his  rash  Nor- 
man folly.  I  see  them  persecuted  from  the  days  of  Nero,  now 
by  a  robber,  again  by  the  followers  of  Genseric.  I  see  them 
protecting  wifely  honor  and  virtue,  by  wielding  the  Church's 
power;  now  over  a  Frenchman,  now  thundering  the  anathemas 
of  the  Church  at  the  sinful  head  of  an  English  king.  I  see 
again  the  greatest  of  them  all  in  heart — the  greatest  in  sanctity 
— the  greatest  in  the  extraordinary  gift  that  he  alone  has  lived 
to  the  years  of  Peter — the  greatest  mark  of  power.  Oh,  had 
you  seen  him,  as  I  have,  when,  kneeling  in  Catholic  Rome,  I 
have  felt  the  touch  of  his  paternal  hand  on  my  unworthy  head. 
Oh,  I  see  him  now ;  his  brows  are  whitened,  for  the  winters  of 
eighty  years  have  passed  over  his  head.  His  virgin  form  is 
bent  down,  for  the  care  of  the  Church  for  nearly  thirty  years 
has  been  upon  him,  and  the  sad  ingratitude  of  the  whole  world 
has  almost  broken  that  loving  heart.  I  see  him  now ;  no  crown 
upon  that  glorious  head,  no  sceptre  in  that  consecrated  hand, 
afraid  to  go  outside  his  own  door,  because  the  rabble,  such  as 
followed  Peter  at  Jerusalem,  such  as  surrounded  Jesus  Christ 
on  Calvary,  are  daring  to  insult  and  deride  him.  But  he  will 
yet  wear  his  crown ;  I  verily  believe  that.  Pius  IX. — that 
champion  of  Mary,  that  champion  of  humanity,  the  champion 
of  the  right  freedom  of  mankind,  the  champion  of  the  Church 
of  God,  the  glorious  man  who  answered  the  tyrant's  every  com- 
mand by  that  '' Nonpossumus ;  "     "We  cannot  do  it  " — no  king 


414  The  Position  and  Privileges  of  the  Pope. 

on  earth  can  force  that  crown  or  sceptre  from  him,  nor  coerce 
that  will.  For  Christ  has  set  that  sacred  crown  upon  his  head, 
and  placed  the  sceptre  of  power  and  of  justice  in  his  hands.  I 
verily  believe  we  shall  live  to  see  the  morning  of  his  Easter, 
when  the  veil  of  his  night  shall  be  lifted  up,  and  will  rise,  lifted 
by  hands  more  than  human ;  and  we  shall  see  such  glory  as  the 
world  once  saw  that  Easter  morning — surrounding  the  figure  of 
Jesus  Christ. 


ST.  LAURENCE  O'TOOLE,  THE  LAST 
CANONIZED  SAINT  OF  IRELAND. 


[Lecture   delivered  at  the  Academy  of  Music,  Brooklyn,  September  l8,  1872,  for 
the  benefit  of  the  new  Church  of  Holy  Cross,  Flatbush.] 

Y  FRIENDS  :  Coming  over  to  Brooklyn  this  evening, 
I  confess  I  did  not  expect  to  find  so  large  a  house  as 
this  which  I  have  now  the  honor  of  addressing.  I 
thought  to  myself  that,  perhaps,  the  subject  might 
not  be  sufficiently  interesting  to  many  amongst  you  ;  for  in  this 
nineteenth  century  of  ours,  saints  are  rather  out  of  fashion,  and 
people  don't  take  much  interest  in  them.  But  your  presence 
here,  in  such  numbers,  this  evening,  cheers  me,  and  gives  me 
another  argument,  if  such  were  necessary,  to  be  proud  of  my  fel- 
low-countrymen and  countrywomen,  who  find,  amidst  the  varied 
attractions  of  these  two  great  cities  in  which  they  live,  nothing 
more  attractive  to  bring  them  together  than  the  record  of  a 
saint  of  the  Catholic  Church — as  true  a  saint  and  as  true  a 
patriot  as  ever  the  Island  of  Saints  and  of  Martyrs  produced. 

I  have  had,  before  now,  the  honor  to  address  you  in  this  hall ; 
but  never,  either  here  or  elsewhere,  have  I  been  furnished  with 
a  nobler  theme  than  that  upon  which  I  propose  to  speak  to  you 
this  evening.  It  comes  home,  my  friends,  to  your  hearts,  and 
to  mine ;  for  there  are  two  blessings  for  which  we  all  thank 
God.  The  first  of  these  is  the  blessing  of  that  Catholic  faith 
in  which  we  live,  and  which  we  enjoy ;  and  the  second  is  the 
blessing  of  that  Irish  blood  which  flows  in  our  veins,  and  throbs 
around  our  hearts.  When,  therefore,  I  mention  to  you  the 
name  of  Laurence  O'Toole,  the  last  canonized  saint  of  Ireland's 
children,  I  name  one  of  the  grandest  figures  that  rises  up  regis- 
tered upon  the  annals  of  the  Catholic  Church,  and  one  of  the 
grandest  figures  that  passes  before  the  historian's  eye,  when  he 


4i6  St.  Laurence  0'  Toole, 

contemplates  the  great  men  and  the  great  glories  that  make  up 
the  history  of  Ireland.  Interesting  to  you  as  Catholics,  I  shall 
endeavor  to  describe  the  saint  ;  interesting  to  you  as  Irishmen, 
I  shall  endeavor  to  describe  the  patriot ;  and  I  shall  invite  you 
to  reflect  upon  the  great  lesson  that  this  man's  name  and  his- 
tory teaches  us,  namely,  that  the  highest  sanctity,  upon  which 
the  Catholic  Church  sets  the  crown  of  her  canonization,  is  com- 
patible with  the  purest  and  strongest  love  of  fatherland  ;  and 
that  the  Catholic  Church  never  refuses  to  crown  the  patriot  in 
the  saint,  and  the  saint  in  the  patriot.  The  subject  will  neces- 
sarily oblige  me  to  touch  upon  the  most  lamentable  and  dolor- 
ous part  of  our  history.  The  historical  muse,  in  tracing  the  rec- 
ord of  other  nations,  writes  with  a  pen  dipped  in  characters  of 
gold  ;  the  historical  muse,  in  writing  the  history  of  Ireland,  dips 
her  pen  in  tears  and  in  blood. 

Laurence  O'Toole  lived  in  the  day  that  witnessed  his  coun- 
try's downfall  ;  and  he  went  down  to  his  grave  a  young  man — 
only  forty-five  years  of  age.  The  physicians  could  not  tell  what 
was  the  malady  that  terminated  that  glorious  life  ;  but  his  Irish 
attendants,  who  surrounded  his  death-bed,  in  a  foreign  land, 
said  to  each  other  that  he  died  of  a  broken  heart.  In  his  veins 
flowed  the  blood  of  Ireland's  royalty.  It  may  be  new  to  some 
of  you — to  many  amongst  you,  I  am  sure,  it  is  no  novelty — to 
tell  you  that  the  ancient  form  of  government  in  Ireland  subdi- 
vided the  island  into  five  distinct  kingdoms,  and  that  the  an- 
cient Brethamael,  or  Celtic  Constitution,  recognized  one  supreme 
monarch,  elected  at  stated  periods  to  govern  all.  These  kingdoms 
were  Ulster,  Meath,  Leinster,  Connaught,  and  Munster,  and 
although  each  province  was  governed  by  its  own  chief  or  ruler, 
the  king — still,  under  these  again  there  were  several  independ- 
ent chiefs,  or  petty  sovereigns,  who  governed  the  powerful  clans 
into  which  the  nation  was  divided.  The  beautiful  mountains 
and  glens  of  Wicklow,  which  the  traveller  of  to-day  loves  to 
visit,  and  where  he  beholds  scenery  as  lovely  in  its  pastoral 
beauty  as  any  he  can  find  upon  the  earth's  surface — this  beau- 
tiful land  of  Wicklow  was  subject  to  a  chieftain  of  the  name  of 
O'Byrne — in  possession  of  his  sept  or  clan,  who  were  all  men 
of  his  own  name.  Even  to  this  day,  after  more  than  a  thousand 
years,  a  few  of  the  name  of  O'Byrne  still  hold  freehold  property 
in  Wicklow. 


The  Last  Canonized  Saint   \f  Ireland.  417 

Never  will  I  forget  how,  in  one  of  my  trips  on  foot  through 
that  romantic  land,  there  was  a  man  pointed  out  to  me,  working 
in  the  field,  as  the  last  lineal  descendant  of  the  ancient  sept,  or 
clan,  of  O'Byrne,  who  once  ruled  and  possessed  the  county  of 
Wicklow.  I  went  over  to  speak  to  him.  He  was  eighty-six 
years  of  age,  tall,  erect,  majestic ;  his  hair,  white  as  silver,  and 
combed  back,  fell  in  venerable  locks  upon  his  shoulders ;  his 
blue  eye  still  retained  somewhat  of  the  chieftain's  fire  of  the 
ages  long  past ;  and,  at  the  age  of  eighty-six,  he  was  doing  a  hard 
day's  work,  suited  to  a  young  and  able-bodied  man.  But  he 
had  the  privilege  so  rare  to  the  Irish  peasant ; — he  was  digging 
his  own  soil,  the  land  that  belonged  to  himself.  He  leant  upon 
his  spade  when  I  spoke  to  him  ;  I  asked  him  his  name.  Draw- 
ing himself  up  to  his  full  height — which  was  considerably  more 
than  six  feet — he  answered,  like  a  hero  :  "  My  name  is  O'Byrne  ; 
and  I  am  the  last  of  them."  "  Of  whom,"  I  said,  "  do  you  rent 
your  land?"  "This  little  spot,"  he  answered,  "  into  which  I 
send  this  spade,  was  my  father's  before  me  ;  was  his  father's  be- 
fore him ;  and  so  on,  until  we  go  up  to  the  time  when  the  first 
of  the  O'Byrnes  sat  upon  his  chair  in  the  hall  of  Tara,  and 
heard  from  Patrick's  voice  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ."  The  sim- 
ple, poorly-clad,  royal  peasant,  in  a  few  words,  flung  back  his 
ancestry  and  genealogy  through  generations  of  heroes,  until  he 
reached  the  very  fountain-head  of  Ireland's  religion  and  Ireland^s 
history.  Where  is  there  a  nation  on  the  face  of  the  earth,  where 
the  peasant,  laboring  in  the  field,  can  make  such  an  answer  to 
the  casual  inquirer — tell  of  ancestors  who  wore  royal  crowns  fif- 
teen hundred  years  ago. 

Adjoining  the  possessions  of  these  clans,  and  the  mountains 
of  Wicklow,  lay,  surrounding  them,  the  fertile  plains  of  historic 
Kildare.  The  traveller  threading  down  his  way  from  the  sum- 
mit of  the  mountain  of  Kippure — called  in  the  Irish  language 
Ceann  B awn,  ox  "White  Head,"  because  of  the  snow  which 
almost  perpetually  rests  upon  its  summit — beholds  before  him 
the  verdant  plains  of  Kildare,  in  slightly-swelling,  undulating 
hill  and  dale — the  richest  land  in  Ireland,  save  and  except  the 
"  Golden  Vale  "  of  glorious  Tipperary.  Through  this  beautiful 
plain,  winding  in  and  out,  he  sees,  like  a  thread  of  silver,  the 
river  Liffey,  from  its  rising  in  the  mountains  of  Wicklow,  until, 
after  many  windings  and  murmurings,  it   passes  through  the 

^1 


41 8  St.  Laurence  C  Toole, 

glens  and  the  romantic  scenery  of  Poula-Phouca,  finds  its  way 
to  the  city  of  Dublin,  and  mingles  with  the  sea  where  it  was  red- 
dened by  the  blood  and  covered  with  the  corpses  of  the  Danish 
invaders,  when  the  sword  of  Ireland  gleamed  in  the  hand  of  Brian 
Boroihme.  These  plains  of  Kildare  were  owned  by  an  Irish 
chieftain  named  O'Toole  ;  and,  as  his  territories  lay  adjoining  the 
septs  of  Wicklow,  it  happened  that  early  in  the  twelfth  century, 
about  the  year  iioo,  Maurice  O'Toole,  prince  of  Kildare,  took 
as  his  wife  a  princess  of  the  house  of  O'Byrne  of  Wicklow.  God 
blessed  their  union  with  many  children ;  and  amongst  them  a 
fair  child  was  born  to  the  Kildare  chieftain  ;  and  by  divine  in- 
spiration, revealed  by  a  man  of  God — a  holy  man  that  travelled 
through  the  land — the  child,  at  the  baptismal  font,  received  the 
name  of  Laurence,  or  as  it  is  in  the  Irish  language,  Lorchan.  He 
was  baptized  before  the  shrine  of  St.  Bridget,  in  Kildare.  He 
was  born  in  his  father's  palace,  near  the  spot  whereon  now  stands 
the  town  of  Castledermot.  In  accordance  with  the  tradition  of 
his  royal  family  he  was  sent  to  the  shrine  of  Ireland's  first  great 
virgin  saint.  There  he  received  the  sign  of  his  Christianity — his 
Christian  name  and  his  adoption  into  the  children  of  God, 
Thence,  taken  once  more  to  his  father's  house,  the  child  was 
reared  there  by  his  Irish  mother,  drawing  from  her  breasts  the 
pure,  untainted,  maternal  nourishment  that  the  mothers  of  Ire- 
land have  given  to  so  many  holy  priests  and  bishops  of  the 
Church  of  God,  that  have  sprung  from  them  for  fifteen  hundred 
years. 

Never  from  that  mother's  lips  did  he  hear  a  word  save  what 
might  form  his  young  spirit,  his  young  heart,  in  the  love  of 
Jesus  Christ  his  Lord.  Never  did  he  see  under  that  mother's 
roof  a  sight  that  might  for  an  instant  taint  or  sully  his  young 
virgin  soul.  So  he  grew  up  under  that  mother's  hand,  even, 
with  reverence  be  it  said,  as  the  Child  of  Nazareth  grew  under 
the  hand  of  His  Virgin  Mother  Mary;  until,  when  he  was  ten 
years  old,  the  young  Laurence  was  the  delight  of  his  father's 
house,  the  joy  of  that  Irish  father's  heart,  and  the  very  idol  of 
Ills  pure  and  holy  mother's  bosom.  When  the  child  was  ten 
years  old  a  scene  occurred,  alas  !  too  frequent  in  the  history  of 
Ireland  !  War  was  declared  against  Prince  Maurice  O'Toole,  of 
Kildare.  His  territories  were  invaded  ;  his  people  were  put  to 
the  sword  ;  his  royal  palace  destroyed ;  and  he  was  obliged  to 


The  Last  Canonized  Saint  of  Ireland.  419 

fly  with  his  princess  wife  and  her  child.  Who  was  the  invader? 
Out  of  this  heart,  consecrated  to  God — out  of  this  heart,  filled 
with  the  love  of  Ireland — I  send  my  curse  back  seven  hundred 
years  upon  the  head  of  that  invader,  who  was  no  other  than  the 
thrice-accursed  Dermot  MacMurrogh,  the  traitor  that  sold  Ire- 
land. He  was  the  King  of  Leinster — born  in  an  hour  accursed  of 
God  and  of  the  genius  of  Irish  history.  He  was  that  Dermot  Mac- 
Murrogh who  stole  away  the  wife  of  O'Rourke,  prince  of  Breffni. 
And  when  Ireland  arose,  like  one  man,  and  declared  that  no  adul- 
terer should  be  allowed  to  live  in  the  Island  of  Saints,  he  was  that 
Dermot  MacMurrogh  who  fled  over  to  England,  kneeled  down 
before  Henry  II.,  and  asked  him  to  help  him  in  Ireland,  and  he 
would  lay  his  country,  enslaved  and  enchained,  at  his  feet.  Mac- 
Murrogh invaded  the  glens  of  Wicklow  and  the  plains  of  Kil- 
dare  in  the  year  1142.  The  Prince  Maurice,  unable  to  contend 
against  so  powerful  an  enemy,  was  obliged  to  come  to  terms  of 
peace  with  him ;  and  the  very  first  thing  that  the  accursed  Der- 
mot MacMurrogh  asked  was,  that  he  should  obtain  possession 
of  the  young  child  Laurence,  to  be  held  by  him  as  a  hostage  for 
his  father.  The  child  of  ten  years — the  child  who  had  never 
seen  evil — the  child,  covered  with  the  blessings  of  God,  was 
handed  over  into  the  hands  of  the  King  of  Leinster,  to  be  treat- 
ed by  him,  as  became  his  lineage  and  degree,  as  a  royal  prince. 
For  two  years  he  remained  in  that  captivity;  and  history  tells 
us,  that  no  sooner  had  MacMurrogh  got  hold  of  the  young 
prince  of  the  house  of  O'Toole,  than  he  sent  him  into  a  desert 
part  of  his  kingdom  ;  the  child  was  only  allowed  as  much  food 
as  would  keep  him  alive  ;  only  allowed  a  covering  of  rags  suf- 
ficient to  keep  life  in  him  ;  and  for  two  years  the  young  prince 
lived  the  life  of  a  slave.  It  seemed  as  if  he,  who  was  to  be  the 
last  great  saint  of  Irish  blood,  was  to  go  through  the  same  pro- 
bation of  suffering  which  the  Almighty  God  permitted  to  fall 
upon  Patrick,  the  first  great  saint  of  Ireland's  adoption. 

Two  years  were  thus  spent  in  misery  and  slavery  ;  two  years 
in  starvation,  cold,  and  want ;  and  during  these  two  years  the 
child  learned,  in  the  school  of  sorrow  and  suffering,  to  despise 
the  world  ;  to  despise  his  royal  dignity  and  his  royal  name  ;  to 
despise  everything  except  two  things  ;  and  these  two  things  he 
learned  to  love,  namely,  Jesus  Christ,  his  God,  and  Ireland,  his 
country.     Oh !  my  friends,  it  is  not  prosperity  that  teaches  a 


420  St.  Laurence  O' Toole, 

man  the  true,  deep  love  either  of  his  God  or  of  his  fatherland. 
The  test  of  this  twofold  love  is  in  suffering.  The  Church  honors 
her  martyrs,  because  they  suffered  for  her ;  and  I  honor  the 
man — 1  do  not  care  how  different  his  views  are  from  mine,  I  do 
not  care  how  mistaken,  how  rash  he  may  have  been — I  honor, 
from  my  inmost  soul,  the  man  that  has  shown  his  love  for  his 
native  land  by  suffering  in  her  cause. 

Meantime,  word  was  brought  to  Prince  Maurice,  the  father, 
of  the  treatment  his  son  was  receiving.  And  now,  mark  here 
again — for,  remember,  that  this  evening  I  am  not  come  so 
much  to  speak  of  this  saintly  man  as  an  individual ;  I  am  come 
to  speak  of  him  with  all  his  surroundings,  all  his  associations, 
as  the  very  epitome  and  essence  of  Irish  genius,  Irish  character, 
and  Irish  history ; — no  sooner  did  the  Irish  father  hear  of  the 
sufferings  of  his  son,  than  he.  rose  up,  unprepared  as  he  was — 
unfit  to  make  war  against  his  powerful  adversary — he  rose  up  ; 
he  drew  his  sword  ;  he  rallied  the  men  of  his  name  around  him  ; 
and  he  declared  war  against  Dermot,  King  of  Leinster,  for  the 
recovery  of  the  young  prince.  The  Irish  father  went  out  like  a 
man  ;  went  out  from  the  embrace  of  his  pure  Irish  wife ;  went 
out  with  his  soul  in  his  hands,  to  stake  his  life,  in  the  day  he 
drew  his  sword,  for  his  child.  He  was  not  one  of  those  forget- 
ful of  his  own  offspring,  heedless  of  the  education  they  receive, 
not  caring  for  their  sufferings — provided  he  himself  enjoyed  his 
own  bread  and  his  own  peace.  No !  He  was  an  Irish  father. 
He  was  what  Irish  fathers  and  mothers  have  been  in  every  age 
of  her  checkered  and  sorrowful  history.  He  was  prepared  to 
lay  down  his  life — to  sacrifice  himself  and  shed  his  blood — 
rather  than  suffer  his  young  child  to  be  brought  up  in  igno- 
rance, in  misery,  and  in  sin.  He  forced  the  unwilling  tyrant  to 
restore  to  him  his  boy.  The  graceful,  beautiful  child  appeared 
before  his  father's  eyes.  He  was  led  to  that  home  blessed  by 
his  loving  mother.  Oh,  how  changed  from  the  darling  child,  who 
two  years  before  had  won  every  heart,  in  all  the  grace,  in  all  the 
beauty,  in  all  the  comeliness  of  a  young  prince,  arrayed  as  be- 
came his  dignity,  with  every  sign  of  the  tenderest  care,  and  the 
most  zealous  guardianship  around  him.  How  did  they  find 
him?  Grown,  through  misery,  beyond  his  years,  he  had  at- 
tained almost  to  the  stature  of  a  man,  with  all  the  signs  of  suf- 
fering— the  signs  of  emaciation,  of  misery,  and  of  hunger  upon 


The  Last  Canonized  Saint  of  Ireland.  42 1 

him ;  his  eyes  sunken  in  his  head  ;  his  pallid  face  expressing 
only  all  the  trials  he  had  gone  through  ;  his  head  bowed  down, 
as  that  of  a  man  old  before  his  time ;  his  beautiful  figure  all 
wasted  away  to  a  mere  anatomy  of  man,  and  clad  in  unprinccly 
rags.  So  he  appeared  to  them.  But  the  Irish  father,  who  was 
a  man  of  faith,  discerned  the  inner  beauty  that  had  come  upon  his 
son — recognized  in  his  dear  son  the  sign  of  predestination — the 
grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  Accordingly,  he  took  him  to 
the  Abbey  of  Glendalough  ;  and  there  he  consigned  him  to  the 
care  of  the  bishop  of  that  ancient  See.  Let  me  say  a  word 
about  this  place  whither  the  young  man  went  to  enter  upon  his 
studies  at  twelve  years  of  age. 

High  up  in  the  heart  of  the  hills  of  Wicklow,  surrounded  by 
those  towering  mountains  that  throw  their  shapes,  in  fantastic 
forms,  far  up  into  the  clouds  ;  high  up  in  the  heart  of  these  hills, 
there  is  a  valley  enclosing  a  deep  lake  surrounded  by  beetling 
rocks.  There,  upon  the  borders  of  that  lake,  there  still  remains 
an  ancient  round  tower,  and  the  ruins  of  seven  churches — 
nothing  more.  Silence  reigns  around.  No  voice  is  heard  save 
the  voice  of  the  singing  bird  upon  the  hawthorn-tree,  or  the 
bleating  of  the  cattle  on  the  sides  of  the  distant  hills  ;  but  there 
was  a  day,  a  year,  a  century  when,  for  many  ages,  that  deep 
valley  resounded  to  the  voice  of  praise,  from  the  morning  watch 
even  until  night,  and  from  the  setting  of  the  sun  until  the  stars 
fled  before  his  coming  splendor  in  the  east.  Morning  and  night ; 
at  the  midnight  hour;  at  the  rising  of  the  sun  ;  at  the  proclaim- 
ing of  high-noon  ;  at  the  sinking  of  the  orb  of  day  to  his  golden 
home  in  the  west — every  hour  was  marked  by  the  voice  of  praise, 
of  benediction,  and  of  prayer,  sounding  forth  from  hundreds  of 
Irish  lips  and  Irish  bosoms,  in  those  happy  days,  when  the  glens 
and  valleys  of  the  surrounding  hills  were  filled  with  the  monks  of 
old,  and  when  from  the  choirs  of  Glendalough — numbering  from 
five  hundred  to  eight  hundred  monks — the  voice  of  praise  was 
never  silent  upon  the  lips  of  the  servants  of  God.  They  dwelt 
in  their  little  cells,  each  man  living  in  a  little  hut,  made  by  his 
own  hands,  upon  the  mountain-sides  around ;  they  came  forth  at 
stated  times  to  public  prayer  in  some  one  or  other  of  the  seven 
churches.  They  were  all  skilled  musicians  ;  for,  as  the  ancient 
chronicler  of  Ireland's  monasticism  tells  us,  "  It  is  a  poor  church, 
indeed,  that  is  without  a  choir."     They  were  skilled  musicians; 


422  St.  Laurence  O'Tooley 

and,  therefore,  as  one  group  finished  their  utterances  in  the  di- 
vine offices  of  praise  to  God,  there  was  another  ready  to  take  up 
the  note  and  perpetuate  the  glorious  song.  The  rest  of  the 
time  not  given  to  prayer  was  spent  in  study ;  for  the  solitaries 
of  Glendalough  were  not  only  the  holiest  of  men,  but  were  also 
the  most  learned  men  in  the  world,  for  three  hundred  years, 
and,  during  that  time,  gained  for  Ireland,  amongst  the  nations, 
the  singular  title  of  the  "  Mother  of  Saints  and  of  Scholars." 
The  founder  of  this  famous  seat  of  anchorites  was  the  great 
monastic  father,  St.  Kevin  ;  and  the  place  where  he  retired  to 
study  and  to  pray  is  still  pointed  out — one  of  the  caves  imbed- 
ded high  up  in  the  face  of  the  mountains,  amid  the  poplar  for- 
ests. And  the  traditions  of  holiness  and  learning  which  St. 
Kevin  established  were  perpetuated  in  Glendalough,  not  only 
for  the  three  hundred  years  of  Ireland's  first  Christianity,  but  act- 
ually outlived  the  ravages  of  the  three  hundred  years  of  Danish 
invasion  and  bloodshed  and  war.  The  land  was  desolated ;  but 
Glendalough  flourished.  The  cathedral  was  in  ruins ;  but  the 
choir  of  Glendalough  was  vocal  as  before.  The  scholar  and  stu- 
dent fled  from  every  sacred  receptacle  in  the  land ;  but  the 
monks  of  Glendalough,  even  in  the  darkest  hour  of  the  Danish 
war,  still  upheld  the  glorious  purity  of  Ireland's  learning  and  of 
Ireland's  holiness.  And  thus,  for  five  hundred  years,  the  valley 
in  the  heart  of  the  Wicklow  hills  was  the  home  of  the  servants 
of  God,  and  resounded  to  His  perpetual  praise.  So  great  was 
the  importance  of  this  monastic  seat,  that  it  was  erected  into 
an  Episcopal  See  ;  and  there  was  a  Bishop  of  Glendalough. 

Now,  it  was  to  this  man  that  Maurice  O'Toole  brought  his 
child  of  twelve  years  old.  He  had,  besides  him,  several  other 
sons,  tall,  strapping,  brave,  and  pious  Irish  youths,  full  of  love 
for  Ireland  ;  full  of  love  for  its  ancient,  glorious  history  ;  full  of 
love  for  their  honored,  royal  name  ;  full  of  love — as  every  true 
Irishman  shall  be  until  the  end  of  time — full  of  love  for  their 
holy  religion  and  for  the  Catholic  Church  of  Ireland.  These 
young  princes  came  with  their  father  to  Glendalough  ;  and,  as 
all  stood  around  the  bishop,  the  warrior  prince  said  to  him : 
"  My  lord,  here  are  my  sons.  I  want  to  give  one  of  them  to 
God.  They  are  all  willing ;  and  I  must  cast  lots  to  find  which 
of  them  the  Lord  will  choose  for  His  own  service  in  the  sacerdo- 
tal state."     While  the  father  was  deliberating,  out  stepped  the 


The  Last  Canonized  Saint  of  Ireland.  423 

young  but  chastened  and  sanctified  Laurence.  "  Oh,  father  !  " 
he  said,  "  the  lot  is  already  cast  in  heaven  ;  and  it  has  fallen 
upon  me.  I,  Laurence,  belong  to  God,  and  to  Him  alone.  I 
have  known  His  support  in  the  days  ol  my  misery  and  my  exile. 
I  have  fed  upon  his  love  in  the  days  of  my  wretchedness  and  my 
hunger.  I  have  separated  my  heart  from  all  other  love,  save 
that  of  my  God  in  heaven  and  my  fellow-countrymen  upon  the 
earth.  To  that  God  and  to  Ireland  will  I  devote  myself.  Let 
me  be  the  priest."  And,  my  friends,  right  well  did  he  express, 
in  this  determination,  and  in  this  choice,  the  true  love  of  a  true- 
hearted  man — for  God  and  for  his  country.  Let  no  man  de- 
ceive you  ;  the  best  lover  of  God  and  of  his  country  is  the  priest. 
The  man  who,  in  the  days  of  his  youth,  in  the  days  of  his  awak- 
ening passions,  in  the  days  when  nature  makes  her  loud  demand 
for  enjoyment — the  man  who  then  says,  "  I  will  sacrifice  my 
heart,  my  affections,  my  life,  my  body,  and  my  soul,"  for  whom  ? 
For  God  alone  ?  No ;  for  he  does  not  go  into  the  desert ;  he 
goes  out  amongst  his  fellow-men ;  he  grasps  every  man  by  the 
hand  with  a  loving  grasp,  and  he  says,  "  I  belong  to  God  and  to 
you."  No  man  is  so  consecrated  to  his  fellow-men  as  the  priest ; 
because  he  comes  to  them  with  a  consecration  from  God.  There 
is  no  man  upon  whom  the  people  can  fall  back,  as  they  can 
upon  the  priest ;  for  no  matter  what  angel  of  pestilence  may 
stalk  in  the  midst  of  them — no  matter  what  demon  may  scatter 
death  or  destruction  around  them — every  man  may  fly ;  the 
priest  alone  must  not,  dare  not,  cannot  fly,  because  he  is  sold  to 
God  and  to  his  neighbor. 

In  the  day,  therefore,  that  the  young  prince  said,  "  I  renounce 
my  principality ;  I  renounce  the  prospect  of  reigning  amongst 
my  people  ;  I  renounce  the  glory  of  the  battle,  the  praise  of  the 
minstrel,  and  the  luxury  of  the  palace ;  all  I  ask  is  the  hut  upon 
the  mountain-side  in  Glendalough — my  God  above  me,  and  my 
country  around  me" — -in  the  day  that  he  said  that,  he  gave 
proof  that,  amongst  the  sons  of  the  Kildare  chieftain  there  was 
not  one  that  loved  his  God  and  Ireland  as  he  did.  How  well 
that  love  was  tested,  we  shall  see. 

The  father,  like  an  Irish  father,  gave  up,  willingly,  the  son 
whom  he  loved  best  of  all ;  for  it  is  the  peculiarity  of  Irish  par- 
ents to  give  to  God  the  best  that  they  have,  and  give  it  cheer- 
fully ;  because  "  God  loveth  a  cheerful  giver."     I  have  seen  in 


424 


St.  Laurence  O' Toole, 


other  lands,  in  France  and  Italy,  young  men  asking  to  be  ad- 
mitted to  the  priesthood,  and  the  father  and  mother  saying, 
"  How  can  we  give  him  up  ?  How  can  we  sacrifice  our  child  ?  " 
— trying  to  keep  him  back  with  tears  and  entreaties.  Oh,  my 
friends !  when  I  witnessed  that,  I  thought  of  the  old  woman  in 
Galway,  who  had  no  one  but  me — her  only  son  ;  I  thought  of 
the  old  man,  bending  down  towards  the  grave,  with  the  weight 
of  years  upon  him  ;  and  I  thought  of  the  poverty  that  might 
stare  them  in  the  face  when  their  only  boy  was  gone  ;  and  yet 
no  tear  was  shed ;  no  word  of  sorrow  was  uttered ;  but,  with 
joy  and  with  pride,  the  Irish  father  and  the  Irish  mother  knew 
how  to  give  up  their  only  son  to  the  God  that  made  him. 

Laurence  bade  adieu  to  his  father  and  his  brothers  ;  they  bent 
their  steps  down  the  slopes  of  the  neighboring  hills  unto  their 
own  principality ;  and  he  took  possession  of  the  monk's  cell,  at 
Glendalough.  For  thirteen  years  he  remained,  a  model  of  the 
most  exalted  sanctity,  even  to  the  aged  ones  who  were  versed 
in  sanctity.  They  knew  what  was  demanded  of  the  monk  and 
the  consecrated  priest ;  they  knew  by  old-time  experience — the 
experience  of  years — how  complete  the  sacrifice  of  the  heart 
must  be.  But  the  presence  of  the  young  prince  amongst  them, 
as  he  came  forth  in  his  monastic  habit,  with  his  eyes  cast  to  the 
ground,  and  his  face  radiating  and  shining  with  the  love  of  God, 
that,  borne  forth  from  his  heart,  came  like  rays  from  the  bright- 
ness of  heaven,  falling  in  light  around  him — they  saw  in  that 
holy  youth,  kneeling,  hour  after  hour,  before  the  presence  of 
God,  upon  the  altar — they  heard  in  that  voice,  ringing  clear  and 
high  in  its  tones  of  praise,  above  and  beyond  the  chorus  of 
voices  of  those  who  praised  the  Lord,  as  if  it  were  an  angel  from 
heaven  in  the  midst  of  them  striving  to  uplift  his  angelic  spirit, 
totally  and  entirely,  upon  the  wings  of  song — they  saw,  in  all 
this  and  more,  an  ideal  of  sanctity,  an  embodiment  of  holiness, 
a  whole  pentecost  of  love  of  God  such  as  they  had  never  con- 
ceived before ;  and  they  all  declared  that  God  had  sent  them  a 
saint  in  the  young  Irish  prince.  Silent  as  the  grave,  he  spoke 
only  with  God  or  of  God.  Hour  after  hour,  spent  in  prayer 
and  study,  made  him  grow  in  every  knowledge  of  the  age,  even 
as  he  grew  in  divine  love.  His  food,  a  morsel  of  brown  bread, 
with  a  cup  of  water  from  the  lake ;  his  i)ed,  the  bare  earth  ; 
his  pillow,  a  stone — he  mortified  his  body  until  he  impressed 


The  Last  Canonized  Saint  of  Ireland.  425 

upon  every  sense  and  upon  his  whole  frame  the  mortification  of 
the  cross  of  the  God  whom  he  learned  to  love.  And  so,  in  his 
twenty-fifth  year,  Laurence — the  Monk  Laurence — was  recog- 
nized as  the  most  enlightened  and  the  most  holy  man  in  the 
island,  which  still  claimed  the  title  of  the  "  Mother  of  Saints 
and  of  Scholars." 

The  abbot  died,  and  the  young  monk  was  elected  Abbot  of 
Glendalough,  and  placed  at  the  head  of  his  brethren.  There  he 
remained  for  five  years  ;  and  the  old  Irish  chroniclers  tell  how 
every  poor,  stricken  creature  in  the  land,  even  to  the  furthest 
ends  of  Ireland,  made  his  way  to  the  glens  of  Wicklow,  that  he 
might  get  relief,  food,  and  clothing  from  his  bounty,  and  the 
blessing  of  God  from  the  touch  of  his  sacred  hand.  We  are  told 
that,  while  he  was  Abbot  of  Glendalough,  there  came,  through 
the  visitation  of  God,  a  terrible  famine  upon  the  land.  Lau- 
rence arose,  gathered  together  all  that  the  monasteries  possessed 
of  clothing  and  of  food  ;  he  took  all  the  sacred  implements  of 
the  altar — the  very  chalices  of  the  sacred  service  ;  he  opened  the 
treasures  his  fathers  had  deposited  with  them  ;  away  went  every- 
thing to  feed  and  clothe  the  poor  and  the  naked.  So,  in  that  year 
of  famine,  when  the  angel  of  death  had  spread  himself  in  deso- 
lation over  the  land,  the  people,  in  these  years,  were  fed,  and 
clothed,  and  saved  through  the  wonderful  charity  of  the  Abbot 
of  Glendalough.  O  saint  in  heaven  !  where  wert  thou  in  '46 
and  *47  ?  O  Irish  heart  !  O  Irish  sainted  soul !  where  then 
were  thy  hands  ?  Why  didst  thou  not  burst  the  cerements  of 
the  tomb,  and  rise  out  of  thy  far-distant  grave  in  Normandy,  to 
break  bread  for  thy  countrymen  in  the  year  of  their  dire  trial  ? 
Alas  !  no  saint  was  there  !  If  Glendalough  had  been,  the  peo- 
ple would  not  have  died.  But  Glendalough  was  swept  away, 
and  the  infernal  spirit  of  Henry  VIII.,  and  of  England's 
supremacy,  was  upon  the  land,  to  let  us  perish. 

Now,  after  five  years  of  this  glorious  rule  of  the  Abbot  of 
Glendalough,  in  the  year  1161,  the  Archbishop  of  Dublin  died. 
The  people,  long  accustomed  to  the  sanctity  and  the  glory  of 
:heir  great  Abbot  of  Glendalough ;  long  accustomed  to  con- 
template the  shining  light  that  was  before  them  ;  all,  with  one 
accord,  cried — and  their  voice  rang  from  end  to  end  of  the  land 
— "  W°  miist  have  the  prince  and  abbot,  Laurence,  for  our 
axchbishoi;  '     One  man  only  was  grieved ;    one  man  only  re- 


426  SL  Laurence  O' Toole ^ 

fused  ;  and  for  twelve  long  months  he  fought  against  this 
dignity  sought  to  be  forced  upon  him,  with  so  much  energy  and 
success,  that  it  was  only  in  the  following  year,  1162,  that,  by 
main  force,  he  was  obliged  to  allow  himself  to  be  consecrated 
Archbishop  of  Dublin.  Archbishop  of  Dublin !  Laurence 
O'Toole,  in  whose  veins  blended  the  royal  blood  of  two  of  Ire- 
land's chief  houses ;  Laurence  O'Toole  was  the  last  man  of  the 
Irish  race  who  sat — recognized — upon  that  glorious  throne. 
For  seven  hundred  years  have  passed  away,  and  from  the  day 
that  St.  Laurence  died,  there  has  been  no  man  of  Irish  blood, 
or  Irish  race,  recognized  as  Archbishop  of  Dublin.  For  three 
hundred  years  after  the  death  of  St.  Laurence  the  archbishops 
were  Catholics;  but  they  were  all  Englishmen.  For  three 
hundred  years  after  that — for  the  last  three  hundred  years — the 
archbishops,  the  so-called  Archbishops  of  Dublin,  were  all  Prot- 
estants ;  and  they  are  all  Englishmen,  too. 

Now,  my  friends,  we  come  to  contemplate  the  monk  in  the 
archbishop.  He  entered  the  city  of  Dublin,  and  took  posses- 
sion of  Christ  Church,  in  the  year  1162.  How  did  he  find  his 
people?  I  am  grieved  to  be  obliged  to  tell  the  tale.  It  was 
now  sixty  years  since  the  Danes  were  banished  from  Ireland,  after 
they  had  remained  in  the  country  for  three  hundred  long  years. 
During  these  three  hundred  years  there  never  had  been  a  day's 
peace  throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  Ireland,  but  con- 
stant war.  Every  year  brought  its  campaign,  every  month — 
every  week — its  pitched  battle,  between  the  soldiers  of  Ireland 
and  the  Danish  invaders.  Let  this  sink  into  your  minds.  Con- 
sider it  well.  There  is  not  a  nation  on  the  face  of  the  earth 
that  can  stand  three  hundred  years  of  constant  war  without  be- 
ing destroyed.  The  churches  are  burned,  the  priests  put  to  the 
sword,  everything  in  confusion  ;  the  sacraments  neglected,  the 
schools  shut  up.  A  people  compelled  to  fight  for  their  lives, 
begin  to  forget  God  the  moment  the  demon  of  war  comes  to 
them.  You  have  had  the  proof  of  it  in  the  four  years*  war 
from  which  you  have  just  come  forth.  Now,  realize  all  this  if 
you  can.  For  three  hundred  years — a  term  nearly  as  long  as 
from  the  day  Columbus  discovered  America  to  the  present  hour 
— there  was  not  a  hill-side  nor  a  valley  in  Ireland  that  did  not 
resound,  year  after  year,  to  the  various  war-cries  of  the  Dane 
and  the  Celt.      Their  bodies  covered  the  land.     Six  thousand 


The  Last  Canonized  Saint  of  Ireland.  427 

of  these  Danish  invaders  were  left  dead  upon  the  field  in  the 
glorious  day  when  Malachi  II.  drew  the  sword  of  Ireland,  and 
smote  them  in  the  valley  of  Glenamadagh,  near  the  Vale  of 
Avoca.  The  sea  around  the  coast  of  Ireland,  for  many  a  day 
and  year,  was  covered  with  the  corpses,  and  the  rivers  ran  red 
with  the  blood  of  the  Celt  and  the  Dane.  Thus  v.  was  for  three 
hundred  years.  What  wonder,  my  dear  friends — what  wonder 
is  it,  that  the  history  of  our  land  tells  that,  by  the  time  Ireland 
finally  conquered  her  Danish  enemies,  after  three  hundred, 
years,  every  vestige  almost  of  holiness,  learning,  and  piety  had 
disappeared  from  the  land?  Nothing  remained  except  the  faith 
which  the  Irish  race  still  hold  dear  as  their  life,  and  that  Ic/e 
for  Ireland  that  had  nerved  their  arms  during  these  three  hun- 
dred years  of  bloodshed  and  war.  But  the  moment  th^t  the 
Danish  invasion  was  ended,  and  that  the  Irish  nation  ureathed 
freely  for  a  time,  that  moment  the  bishops,  and  priests,  and  thf 
people  put  head,  heart,  and  hands  together,  to  build  up  the  an 
cient  edifice  of  Ireland's  learning,  and  Ireland's  sanctity.  It  Xi 
a  well-known  fact,  that  although  disorder,  confusion,  and  in 
iquity  had  crept  into  the  land  and  abounded — that  neither  tht 
priesthood  nor  the  people  reconciled  themselves  to  it ;  but, 
immediately  upon  the  departure  of  the  Danes,  set  to  work. 
The  bishops  and  priests  met  in  council ;  the  schools  and  col- 
leges were  reopened ;  and  Ireland's  sanctity  and  holiness  was 
fast  returning,  at  the  very  time  that  St.  Laurence  O'Toole  took 
possession  of  the  See  of  Dublin.  Still  he  found  the  chieftains 
of  Ireland  divided  amongst  themselves.  He  found  every  prov- 
ince in  the  land,  every  sept  or  clan  in  the  land,  fighting  amongst 
themselves,  and  disputing.  Not  content  with  having  shed  their 
blood  generously  for  Ireland  during  three  hundred  years,  they 
would  now  fain  flood  the  land  again  with  Irish  blood  shed  in 
domestic  broils  and  contentions,  unworthy  of  a  people  who  had 
passed  through  such  an  ordeal,  such  a  trial.  And  then,  more- 
over, amongst  the  people  incorporated  in  his  own  city  of  Dub- 
lin, the  marriage-tie  was  not  sufficiently  regarded.  And  I  verily 
believe  that  the  reason  of  this  was  that  the  greater  part  of  the 
people  of  Dublin  at  the  time  were  descendants  of  the  Danes, 
and  not  pure  Irish ;  for  I  can  scarcely  imagine  the  pure  stock 
of  Ireland  renouncing  under  any  pressure  the  virtue  with  which 
the  Almighty  God  endowed  them  at  the  hands  of  Patrick,  both 


428  Si.  Laurence  O' Toole, 

men  and  women.     That  virtue — the  virtue  of  purity,  crowned 
by  sacramental  love,  and  through  it  alone,  crowned  by  their  con 
jugal  fidelity — has  been  the  first  and  grandest  boast  of  the  Irish 
race. 

Grieved  and  excited  to  indignation  by  what  he  beheld,  the 
solitary  from  Glendalough,  accustomed  to  silence,  retirement, 
and  communion  with  God,  as  soon  as  he  came,  a  mitred  arch- 
bishop, to  his  people,  ascended  the  pulpit  of  Christ  Church,  in 
Dublin,  and  there,  in  the  Irish  language — so  grand,  so  poetic, 
so  vigorous,  and  so  majestic  in  its  expression — he  hurled  out  his 
denunciations  against  every  form  of  impiety  and  of  iniquity 
around  him.  He  sent  forth  his  voice,  as  a  prince  as  well  as  an 
archbishop,  unto  the  ends  of  the  land,  and  said  to  the  chieftains 
of  Ireland  :  "  Unless  you  cease  your  unworthy  contentions,  I 
tell  you,  in  the  name  of  the  Lord  God,  that  God  will  punish 
this  bloodshed  and  this  unworthy  contention,  by  sacrificing  the 
liberty  of  our  country."  Clear  and  terrific  was  the  voice. 
Clear  as  the  angel's  trumpet  announcing  judgment,  the  voice  of 
the  great  Irish  prince-archbishop  went  out  upon  the  land,  and 
fell  upon  the  unfortunately  heedless  and  unwilling  ears  of  the 
Irish  chieftains.  Their  dissensions  continued.  The  kings  of 
Ulster,  retreating  into  their  own  kingdom,  took  no  share  in  the 
affairs  of  the  rest  of  Ireland.  The  clans  of  Munster  made  war, 
under  the  leadership  of  the  O'Briens,  against  the  royal  house  of 
O'Connor,  in  Connaught ;  while  Ulster  itself  was  divided  by  a 
hundred  different  feuds,  which  separated  the  whole  country 
into  so  many  battle-fields.  Thus  was  Ireland  in  the  day  when 
the  news  was  brought  the  Archbishop  of  Dublin  that  the  Nor- 
man forces  had  come  upon  the  shores  of  Ireland;  that  the  in- 
vader's accursed  foot  was  once  more  upon  the  soil  of  Erin.  It 
came  to  him  as  though  it  was  the  knell  of  his  own  doom  ;  it 
came  to  him  as  though  it  was  the  judgment  of  God,  which  he 
had  foreseen,  for  the  sins  and  dissensions  of  his  own  people. 
And  yet,  even  thus  coming,  it  roused  within  him  all  the  zeal  of 
the  prelate,  and  all  the  fire  of  the  prince  of  Irish  royal  blood. 
It  roused  the  lion  spirit  in  the  chaste  bosom  of  the  archbishop  ; 
and  when  Laurence  came  forth  amongst  the  people  they  scarce- 
ly knew  him.  There  seemed  to  be  a  new  spirit  in  the  indigna- 
tion which  came  from  him.  The  eye,  accustomed  to  be  cast 
down  upon  the  earth,  with  virginal  modesty,  now  glared  around 


The  Last  Canonised  Saint  of  Ireland.  429 

with  a  fiery  glance,  because  the  sacred  cause  of  Ireland  was  in 
danger,  and  the  invader  was  upon  her  soil.  The  voice  that  was 
accustomed  to  speak  only  words  of  peace  and  benediction,  now 
sounded  forth,  in  its  clarion  notes,  "  War!  War!  Let  slip  the 
spirit  and  the  dogs  of  war  !  Draw  the  sword  of  Erin  !  Let 
your  blood  flow  as  rivers  in  the  land,  until  the  accursed  and  de- 
tested invader  shall  be  driven  into  the  sea."  He  went  out  from 
Dublin ;  he  left  his  city,  his  cathedral,  his  people  behind  him  ; 
he  went  straight  down  into  Connaught,  the  seat  of  Ireland's 
monarch,  and  he  said  :  "  Oh,  my  high  king,  arise  ;  gather  up  the 
forces  of  Ireland,  and  march  with  me  to  Dublin.  I  will  be  in  the 
front  ranks  in  the  day  when  we  do  to  the  invaders  what  Brian 
did  upon  the  plain  of  Clontarf,  when  he  swept  them  into  the 
sea."  His  voice  went  out  in  Ulster,  and  called  O'Melaghlin, 
King  of  Ulster,  from  his  ignoble  repose,  to  arise,  gird  on  his 
sword,  and  draw  it  for  Ireland.  His  voice  penetrated  into  the 
south,  re-echoed  upon  the  shores  of  the  Shannon,  and  swept 
like  a  trumpet-blast  through  the  ruined  halls  of  Kincora,  rous- 
ing the  McCarthy  Mor  and  the  O'Brien.  They  rallied  ;  they 
came  together  ;  they  stood  between  the  Norman  and  the  walls 
of  Dublin,  the  archbishop  in  the  midst  of  them.  With  all  his 
power,  with  all  his  love  of  his  country,  with  all  his  spirit  of  de- 
votion, he  was  unable  to  keep  them  together.  Domestic  feuds 
and  dissensions  sprang  up  amongst  them.  Oh  !  the  accursed 
spirit  of  dissension,  that  has  kept  us  divided  for  so  many  years, 
and  that  keeps  us  divided  to-day!  We  have  heard  of  united 
Ireland  ;  we  have  heard  of  those  brave  hearts  who  took  that 
name ;  but  when  were  Irishmen  united  ?  The  very  last  time 
that  Irishmen  were  united  was  on  that  Good  Friday  morning, 
eight  hundred  years  ago,  when  the  plain  of  Clontarf  was  cover- 
ed with  the  dead  bodies  of  the  Danes,  and  when  Dublin  Bay 
was  filled  with  their  floating  corpses.  From  that  day  to  this,  our 
united  Ireland  is  but  the  dream  of  the  poet,  and  the  inspiration 
of  the  lover  of  his  native  land. 

Dublin  was  taken.  Roderick  O'Connor,  King  of  Connaught, 
retired  into  his  own  kingdom  ;  the  Ulster  men  went  home  across 
the  Boyne  ;  the  septs  of  Leinster  were  obliged  to  make  their 
submission.  Two  or  three  years  later,  the  English  monarch 
himself  arrived  ;  and  every  prince  in  Ireland  made  a  nominal 
submission  to  him,  save  and  except  the  glorious,  the  immortal 


430  SL  Laurence  O' Toole, 

O'Neill,  who  still  upheld  the  oriflamme  of  Ireland — the  national 
flag  of  Erin.  When  Dublin  was  taken,  the  Archbishop  Lau- 
rence interceded  for  his  people  in  this  fashion.  When  the  Nor- 
mans laid  siege  to  the  city  the  first  time,  the  people  felt  that 
resistance  would  be  useless  ;  so  they  called  on  their  archbishop 
to  go  out  and  meet  Dermot  MacMurrogh,  the  adulterous  trai- 
tor, and  the  celebrated  Richard,  Earl  of  Pembroke,  surnamed 
"  Strongbow."  The  archbishop  went  out  to  make  terms  for 
his  people  ;  and  whilst  he  was  thus  engaged  on  one  side  of 
the  city.  Miles  de  Cogan  entered  on  the  other  side,  and  be- 
gan to  slaughter  the  people.  Their  cry  of  horror  reached  the 
archbishop's  ears,  as  he  stood  in  the  presence  of  the  Norman 
victors.  The  moment  he  heard  the  cry  of  his  people,  which 
resounded  in  his  ears  as  the  cry  of  the  first-born  babe  in  danger 
resounds  in  the  heart  of  the  mother  that  bore  it,  he  fled  from 
their  presence  and  rushed  forth,  and  found  that  the  blood  of 
his  people  actually  flowed  in  the  streets  of  the  city.  Then,  for- 
getful of  his  safety  or  his  life,  he  threw  himself  between  them 
and  the  assailing  army,  and  to  the  invaders  he  said :  "Hold! 
hold  !  Not  another  son  of  Ireland  shall  be  slain.  Not  another 
drop  of  my  people's  blood  shall  be  shed,  until  you  have  first 
pierced  my  heart ;  for  I  am  their  father  and  their  bishop."  The 
city  was  surrendered.  Now,  what  did  the  archbishop  do?  Did 
he  give  up  the  cause  of  Ireland,  like  a  faint-hearted  man  ?  He 
saw  the  Irish  kings  actually  fighting  with  each  other — shedding 
each  other's  blood  at  the  very  time  the  invader  took  possession 
of  their  capital.  He  saw  that  no  two  of  them  could  agree  to 
obey  one  common  head,  or  adopt  one  common  line  of  policy. 
He  had  labored  in  vain.  Did  he  give  up  the  cause?  No  !  No 
faithful  Irish  bishop  or  priest  ever  did  or  ever  will  give  up  the  ^ 
cause  of  Ireland.  He  went  out  from  Dublin  once  more ;  he 
went  again  to  the  court  of  King  Roderick,  shook  him  once 
more  into  courage  and  hope  for  Ireland,  and  rallied  his  people. 
He  called  the  Ulster  men  again  from  their  fastnesses,  rallied 
the  men  of  Munster,  the  McCarthy  Mor,  the  O'Donnells,  and 
the  O'Briens ;  he  roused  all  Ireland.  And  the  archbishop 
marched  at  the  head  of  sixty  thousand  men,  in  order  to  lay 
siege  to  Dublin,  vowing  that  as  long  as  an  English  invader  re- 
mained on  Irish  soil,  he  could  never  know  a  moment's  rest. 
Dublin  was  besieged.     The  Irish  forces,  to  the  number  of  sixty^ 


The  Last  Canonised  Saint  of  Ireland.  431 

thousand,  lay  around  it.  O'Melaghlin,  of  Ulster,  took  possession 
of  the  Hill  of  Hovvth  ;  on  the  plain  of  Clontarf,  Roderick  O'Con- 
nor, with  his  large  army,  spread  over  to  the  site  of  the  Phoe- 
nix Park.  On  the  other  side,  east  of  the  hill,  lay  the  O  Briens 
of  Munster  ;  the  passes  by  the  coast  of  Dalkey  and  Dunleary 
were  held  by  the  O'Tooles  and  the  O'Byrnes  of  Wicklow. 
They  pressed  the  siege  until  the  Norman  knights  were  almost 
famished  in  the  city ;  and  driven  by  desperation  made  one  des- 
perate sally,  broke  through  one  portion  of  the  line  of  the  King 
of  Connaught's  army,  and  so  liberated  themselves.  The  Irish 
host,  instead  of  closing  around  them,  and  destroying  them,  losi 
courage  and  heart.  Divided  for  so  many  years,  they  separated 
once  more.  The  O'Connor  withdrew  into  his  Avestern  province  ; 
the  O'Neill  and  the  O'Donnell  withdrew  again  from  the  town ; 
and  once  more,  despite  the  tears,  the  prayers,  and  the  devotion 
of  Laurence,  the  land  of  Ireland  was  left  at  the  mercy  of  its 
ruthless  and  tyrannical  conquerors.  If  we  credit  the  evidence 
of  the  Irish  historian,  Leland,  one  of  the  most  ancient  and  re- 
spectable of  our  historians — he  tells  us  that,  in  that  siege  of 
Dublin,  the  archbishop  was  seen  passing  from  rank  to  rank  ani- 
mating the  men,  speaking  to  them  in  the  ringing  tones  of  their 
native  Irish  language,  appealing  to  them  by  all  that  they  held 
most  sacred  upon  earth,  and  by  their  hopes  of  heaven,  to  do 
battle  like  men  for  their  native  land,  and  to  destroy  its  invaders. 
Leland  goes  further.  He  tells  us — upon  what  authority  I  know 
not — that  so  carried  away  was  the  Irish  prince  archbishop,  when 
he  saw  the  day  darkening  for  Ireland,  that  he  laid  aside  his 
episcopal  station  for  an  hour,  girded  on  the  sword,  and  led  o" 
the  Irish  forces,  charging  into  the  midst  of  their  enemies  as  be- 
came a  prince. 

And  now  the  heart  of  the  man  was  broken  ;  his  high  hopes 
were  crushed  forever.  Perhaps,  with  his  prophetic  eye,  illu- 
mined by  the  spirit  of  sanctity  that  was  within  him,  perhaps  he 
foresaw  and  caught  a  glimpse  of  the  ages  that  were  to  come ; 
perhaps  he  saw  his  country,  year  after  year,  century  after  cen- 
tury, until  her  very  name  went  out  amongst  the  peoples  of  the 
earth  as  "  the  Niobe  of  nations,"  the  most  stricken,  heart-broken 
of  peoples.  Certain  it  is  that  the  heart  of  the  man  was  broken 
within  him.  In  the  year  1 171,  all  the  princes  of  Ireland,  ex- 
cepting Ulster,  having  made  their  submission,  nothing  remained 


432  St.  Laurence  O'  Toole, 

for  the  holy  prince-archbishop  but  to  do  all  he  could  for  his  peo- 
ple. One  of  Henry's  pretexts  for  conquering  Ireland  was  that 
they  were  so  wicked  a  people,  and  he  was  so  good  and  holy,  it 
was  necessary  that  he  should  conquer  the  country  to  preserve 
the  faith.  How  did  he  begin  to  make  himself  so  good  and  holy? 
He  shed  the  blood  of  St.  Thomas  of  Canterbury.  That  blood 
was  upon  his  hand — the  blood  of  a  holy  archbishop,  slaughtered 
at  the  foot  of  the  altar,  in  the  very  presence  of  Jesus  Christ,  by 
the  order  of  the  tyrant !  That  blood  was  red  upon  the  hands 
of  the  man  who  came  to  teach  the  Irish  people  their  religion  ! 
Before  him  came  the  Archbishop  of  Dublin,  fearless,  although 
his  fellow-prelate  had  been  slaughtered.  He  demanded  terms 
for  his  people.  He  spoke  with  authority,  as  became  a  prince 
of  the  people,  and  in  the  name  of  God.  He  frightened  the 
tyrannical  English  monarch  of  that  race  of  which  St.  Bernard 
said  :  "  They  came  from  the  devil,  and  to  the  devil  they  will  go." 
Those  were  the  words  of  St.  Bernard,  of  that  very  house  of 
Plantagenet  of  whom  Henry  II.  was  one  of  the  great  founders 
— the  man  who  invaded  Ireland.  Now,  my  friends,  twice  did 
the  saint  cross  the  sea  to  intercede  for  the  Irish  people  ;  to  make 
treaties  of  peace  for  the  Irish  kings  with  the  English  monarch  ; 
and  to  obtain  the  recognition  of  Ireland's  freedom  and  Ireland's 
nationality.  And  history  tells  us  that  it  is  to  the  last  of  Ire- 
land's saints  we  owe  that  treaty  of  peace  which  was  concluded 
between  O'Connor,  King  of  Connaught,  and  Henry  II.,  King 
of  England,  and  which  recognized  Ireland's  nationality,  Ireland's 
existence  as  a  distinct  nation,  embodied  in  the  person  of  her 
monarch.  You  may  say  to  me  it  was  a  small  thing  for  him  to 
recognize  Ireland's  nationality  when  he  had  his  foot  upon  her 
neck  ;  but  I  say  it  was  a  great  thing  that,  for  seven  hundred 
years  of  war  and  persecution,  through  the  action  and  the  spirit 
of  the  last  of  Ireland's  saints,  we  are — I  thank  my  God  in 
heaven — we  are  a  nation  still.  We  are  not  a  province  ;  Ireland 
was  never  a  province  of  the  British  Empire.  To-day,  the  Queen 
of  England  calls  herself  "  Queen  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland." 
To  this  day  she  sends  to  Ireland  her  viceroy,  which  means  one 
who  takes  the  place  of  the  king.  A  viceroy  is  not  sent  to  a 
province,  but  to  a  nation.  But  you  will  ask  what  does  all  this 
serve  ?  I  answer,  a  noble  idea  always  serves  ;  a  noble  idea, 
maintained  and  upheld  by  the  hand  of  priest  and  layman,  and 


The  Last  Canonized  Saint  of  Ireland.  433 

upheld  by  the  hand  of  the  martyr — a  noble  idea,  upheld  by  a 
worship  recognized  for  ages  as  the  rallying-point  of  a  people, 
when  the  hour  of  their  destiny  arrives — such  shall  Ireland's 
nationality  be  for  Irishmen. 

You  have  all  often  heard  that,  when  the  English  king  invaded 
Ireland,  he  came  in  virtue  of  a  Bull  which  he  received  from  the 
Pope.  Writers  of  English  history  assert  this,  and  many  amongst 
them  bring  their  proofs  of  it.  Now,  I  have  my  doubts  whether 
he  got  that  rescript  at  all.  I  have  studied  this  question  as  well  as 
I  could,  and  I  don't  believe  that  the  Pope  ever  gave  the  English 
monarch  a  commission  to  invade  Ireland.  It  is  singular  that  of 
Irish  archaeologists  the  greatest  now  living — the  present  re- 
spected Bishop  of  Ossory,  Dr.  Moran,  who  has  studied  for 
years  at  the  fountain-head,  in  Rome — gives  his  conclusion,  de- 
liberate and  calm, that  he  does  not  believe  one  word  of  the  story 
of  Adrian  IV.  making  a  present  of  Ireland  to  the  English  king. 
It  may  be  so.  It  may  be  that  such  representations  were  made 
to  the  people  that  inferred  this  ;  it  may  be  that  the  English, 
monarch  sent  his  ministers  there,  who  told  the  Holy  Father 
that  the  Irish  were  such  terrible  people,  and  had  given  up  legiti- 
mate marriage  altogether ;  and  their  priests  were  a  bad  lot ; 
and  if  he  would  give  him  leave  to  go  over,  he  would  set  every- 
thing to  rights  ;  for  English  historians  tell  us  that  was  the  case  ; 
and  that,  when  Henry  II.  came  to  Ireland,  he  had  in  his  hand 
a  letter  from  the  Pope,  authorizing  him  to  go  and  take  posses- 
sion of  the  island.  Now,  I  answer,  if  he  had  that  letter,  why 
did  he  not  show  it  ?  He  never  showed  it.  When  he  came  to 
Ireland  he  never  said  one  word  about  that  letter — that  permis- 
sion from  the  Pope.  He  called  all  the  Irish  together  (St.  Lau- 
rence O'Toole  was  there),  at  Cashel,  in  1171  ;  he  had  them  all, 
except  a  few  from  Connaught,  and  some  of  the  Ulster  bishops, 
who  held  aloof  because  they  were  not  yet  conquered ;  and 
when  all  the  bishops  and  priests  were  there,  Henry  came  and 
said  to  them,  "  Now  you  must  make  laws  and  set  everything  to 
rights."  He  never  said  one  word  about  the  letter  of  the  Pope. 
When  Henry  II.  came  to  Ireland,  all  the  historians  tell  us,  the  only 
man  in  Ireland  of  whom  he  was  really  afraid  was  St.  Laurence 
O'Toole  ;  because  there  was  no  man  in  Ireland  who  had  such 
power  to  bind  the  people  together ;  no  man  that  loved  Ireland 
as  he  did ;  not  a  braver  man  on  that  battle-field  of  Clontarf, 

28 


434  ^^-  Laurence  (9'  Toole, 

than  that  man  whose  Irish  heart  beat  beneath  the  cope  of  the 
Irish  Archbishop  of  Dublin,  The  English  king  was  so  much  afraid 
of  him  that  he  endeavored  by  the  use  of  every  means  in  his 
power  to  gain  him  over.  Now,  the  English  king  knew  well  that 
if  St.  Laurence  O'Toole  knew  he  had  a  letter  of  that  kind  from 
the  Pope,  like  an  humble  and  obedient  man,  he  would  cease 
his  opposition ;  he  would  not  array  sixty  thousand  men 
against  him  ;  and  yet  he  never  showed  that  letter  to  St.  Lau- 
rence O'Toole.  He  waited  until  Pope  Adrian  IV.  was  ten  years 
dead  and  in  his  grave,  and  then  he  produced  the  letter.  And 
so  I  say  that,  although  there  be  grave  and  weighty  arguments 
on  one  side,  I  have  such  doubts  as  to  the  authenticity  of  that 
Bull  of  Adrian  IV.,  that  I  don't  believe  one  word  of  it.  Nay 
more,  seven  years  later,  when  St.  Laurence  went  to  Rome  to  the 
Council  of  Lateran,  Alexander  was  then  Pope;  and  of  all  the 
bishops  that  came  to  that  council  there  was  not  a  single  man 
that  received  so  much  honor  as  the  Archbishop  of  Dublin  did, 
from  the  Pope,  because  of  his  sanctity.  He  put  him  in  the 
highest  place,  gave  him  the  pallium  of  archbishop,  ordered  the 
Bishops  of  Ossory,  of  Gallatia,  and  others,  to  be  subject  to  him, 
made  him  his  own  Legate-Apostolic,  and  crowned  with  glory 
•sent  him  back  to  Ireland.  Now,  if  the  Pope  had  really  given 
(Permission  to  Henry  II.  to  go  and  take  Ireland,  and  the  arch- 
bishop should,  in  the  face  of  that,  have  as  it  were  taken  Henry 
II.  by  the  throat — if  that  Bull  of  Adrian  IV.  was  shown,  you, 
Laurence  O'Toole,  saint  in  heaven  to-night,  you  would  have 
gone  to  Rome  as  a  man  under  a  cloud,  a  man  who  forgot  where 
he  owed  his  obedience,  a  man  who  dared  to  excite  the  people 
after  the  head  of  the  Church  had  declared  they  should  sub- 
mit. But  he  did  go  to  Rome  in  that  capacity ;  he  went  to  re- 
ceive more  honor  than  any  other  bishop  ;  therefore,  I  conclude 
that  he  never  saw  this  letter  of  the  Pope,  because  I  believe  the 
Pope  never  wrote  it. 

In  the  year  1180  Roderick  O'Connor,  King  of  Ireland,  was 
again  in  trouble  with  the  English  monarch  ;  and  he  had  to  send 
one  of  his  sons  as  a  hostage  to  Henry.  St.  Laurence  took 
charge  of  the  boy,  and  brought  him  over  to  England,  to  put  him 
into  the  hands  of  the  English  monarch,  thinking,  perhaps,  with 
sorrow  of  the  day  when  he  himself,  a  young  prince,  was  put  into 
the  hands  of  a  cruel,  heartless  tyrant.     The  King  of  England 


The  Last  Canonised  Saint  of  Ireland.  435 

was  not  in  the  land,  he  was  in  France  at  the  time ;  but  before 
he  went  to  France  he  left  orders  that  if  Laurence  O'Toole, 
Archbishop  of  Dublin,  was  to  come  over  to  England,  he  was  to 
be  kept  prisoner,  and  not  to  be  allowed  back  any  more.  This 
was  the  man  who  came  to  reform  the  Irish  Church,  and  teach 
the  people  how  to  be  good  !  No  Irish  king  was  ever  known  to 
lay  hand  on  a  bishop.  The  first  English  monarch  that  came,  as 
Cromwell  came  in  after  years,  with  the  words  of  God's  holy 
Scripture  on  his  lips ;  he  who  had  shed  the  blood  of  St.  Thomas 
a  Becket,  laid  hands  upon  and  bound  the  Irish  archbishop  in 
England.  But  the  Irish  blood — the  spirit  that  can  never  bend, 
though  it  may  be  broken — revolted  against  this  treatment. 
When  he  found  he  was  going  to  be  detained  as  a  prisoner, 
he  instantly  arose,  took  the  young  prince,  and  went  over  to 
France,  to  stand  before  the  English  monarch,  and  beard  him  to 
his  face.  He  arrived  in  France  ;  and  as  soon  as  he  touched  the 
soil  of  Normandy  you  can  easily  imagine  how  he  turned  around, 
saw  the  white  cliffs  of  Dover — the  English  coast — and,  lifting  up 
his  hands,  left  his  last  curse  upon  it.  Travelling  a  little  into  the 
country,  the  heart-sorrow  that  weighed  upon  him  became  too 
great.  What!  An  Irish  prince,  an  Irish  archbishop,  the  son 
of  an  unconquered  race,  of  a  people  that  had  never  known  serf- 
dom or  slavery,  has  the  eldest  son  of  Ireland's  monarch,  Rod- 
erick O'Connor,  and  is  bringing  him,  a  prisoner,  to  put  him  into 
the  hands  of  the  tyrant  that  had  shed  the  blood  of  his  people ! 
It  was  too  much  for  him,  because  he  thought  of  Ireland.  He 
saw  his  country  invaded  and  enslaved  ;  the  chieftains  divided, 
the  holy  work  in  which  he  was  engaged  broken  and  ruined  ;  the 
sanctuaries  of  St.  Mel,  at  Armagh,  in  flames ;  the  churches  de- 
stroyed ;  Columba's  saintly  monasteries  sacked  and  ruined.  His 
heart  was  broken  within  him.  He  turned  aside  to  the  Abbey 
of  Yew,  in  Normandy,  and,  entering  in,  he  said  to  the  abbot: 
"  Give  a  dying  man  a  place  whereon  he  may  lie  down  and  die." 
Because  of  his  high  dignity,  as  Archbishop  of  Dublin,  they  re- 
ceived him  with  all  honor.  Now,  the  angel  of  death  was  ap- 
proaching. With  his  dying  breath  he  commissioned  his  sec- 
retary, the  Irish  priest  that  was  with  him,  to  take  the  young 
prince  and  carry  him  to  Henry;  and  tell  him,  that  "  When  the 
agonies  of  death  were  upon  me,  I  charged  him,  in  the  name  of 
the  God  before  whom  I  am  about  to  appear,  with  my  last  words 


436  5/.  Laurence  0' Toole, 

I  charged  him,  in  the  name  of  Almighty  God,  to  treat  this 
prince  as  the  son  of  a  king  ;  not  to  forget  that  this  prince's  father 
is  a  king ;  and  that  the  people  are  still  a  nation,  having  a  king 
at  their  head."  Then,  as  he  lay  upon  his  humble  bed,  the  monks 
came  around  him,  and  they  heard  him  pouring  forth  his  soul 
to  God  in  prayer;  and  they  said  to  each  other:  "  This  man 
must  be  very  rich  ;  he  is  archbishop  of  the  richest  diocese 
in  the  world  ;  perhaps  he  has  not  made  his  will."  They  did 
not  know  St.  Laurence.  When  he  was  Archbishop  of  Dublin 
he  fed  five  hundred  poor  people  every  day  at  his  own  table,  and 
he  clothed  and  fed  four  hundred  others  outside,  and  constantly 
provided  for  two  hundred  orphans.  And  when  they  came  and 
said  to  him  ;  "Will  you  not  make  your  will?  "he  looked  up, 
and  said  :  "  I  declare  to  my  God,  that  I  have  not  a  single  coin 
in  this  world  to  leave  behind  me."  Then  the  agonies  of  death 
came  upon  him.  There  he  lay,  communing  with  his  divine 
Lord.  And  now,  at  last,  in  this  last  moment,  the  patriot  must 
be  lost  in  the  saint,  the  prince  forgotten  in  the  dying  Christian. 
No  thought  can  come  between  the  man  of  God  and  that  God 
whom  he  is  about  to  meet.  Hark  to  his  words :  "  Into  thy 
hands,  O  Jesus  Christ,  I  resign  my  spirit.  O  strong  Son  of 
God,  take  me.  I  have  now  known  I  will  see  Thy  face,  and  re- 
joice forever."  Then  the  French  monks,  praying  around  him, 
heard  strange  words  from  his  lips ;  they  did  not  understand 
them,  for  they  were  spoken  in  the  Irish  language.  His  last 
words  were :  "  O  foolish  and  senseless  people !  what  will  now 
become  of  you  ?  Who  now  will  relieve  your  miseries  ?  who  will 
heal  you,  now  that  I  am  going  away?  "  With  these  words  he 
died.  He  is  canonized  by  the  Church  of  God ;  his  Christian 
soul  passed  straight  to  the  high  throne  which  he  had  earned  in 
heaven ;  and  his  last  words  upon  earth  proved  that  the  most 
sacred  love  that  ever  filled  the  heart  of  man,  next  to  the  love 
of  his  God,  was  his  love  for  the  land  that  bore  him,  and  the 
people  of  his  own  blood. 

This  was  the  last  of  Ireland's  canonized  saints.  He  was 
canonized  in  Rome  by  Pope  Honorius  III.,  in  the  year  1226. 
His  body  is  enshrined  in  the  abbey  church  in  which  he  died  ; 
and  his  name  has  gone  forth — St.  Laurence  O'Toole — as  the 
last  of  the  great  prelates  the  Irish  Church  produced  ;  and  she 
was  the  mother  of  many  saints  and  of  great  prelates.     The 


The  Last  Canonized  Saint  of  Ireland.  437 

spirit  that  animated  his  love  for  home — the  love  that  broke  his 
heart — has  survived  in  the  hearts  of  those  who  came  after  him, 
inheriting  his  priesthood.  It  was  the  spirit  of  Laurence  that 
kept  the  Irish  people  faithful  to  their  priests,  and  the  Irish 
priests  faithful  to  their  people,  when  every  power  of  earth  and 
of  hell  was  raised  up  against  them.  When  all  the  might  of 
England  declared  that  it  must  separate  that  priesthood  from 
that  people — corrupt  that  priesthood  and  destroy  the  Catholic 
faith  in  Ireland — the  priesthood,  animated  by  the  spirit  of 
Laurence,  the  Irish  people,  animated  by  the  spirit  of  their  holy 
faith,  joined  hands  in  that  day,  and  answered  :  "  Those  whom 
God  hath  joined  together  no  man  can  sever."  Never  did  the 
Irish  people  separate  themselves  from  their  clergy,  nor  the 
Irish  priesthood  from  their  faithful,  loving  people.  When  the 
Prophet  Elias  was  taken  up  to  heaven,  Eliseus  cried  out  to  him  : 
"  Let  me  have  thy  twofold  spirit.  Leave  thy  spirit  upon  me." 
And  he  who  was  borne  aloft  on  the  chariot  of  fire,  let  fall  his 
mantle,  and  with  it  his  twofold  spirit,  upon  him.  Laurence, 
ascending  to  heaven,  must  have  heard  some  great,  some  faithful 
bishop  in  Ireland  :  "  Oh !  chariot  of  Israel  and  its  charioteer, 
leave  behind  thee  thy  twofold  spirit — the  love  of  God  and  of 
thy  country.  Leave  that  twofold  love  to  be  the  inheritance 
of  Irish  priests  and  Irish  bishops."  The  prayer  was  answered, 
the  mystic  mantle  has  fallen.  Ireland  is  bound  to-day,  as  of 
old,  as  one  man,  the  priests  to  the  people  and  the  people  to  the 
priests,  by  the  golden  fillet  of  a  common  faith,  and  the  silver 
cord  of  a  common  love  for  their  motherland.  Let  me  conclude. 
Oh  !  may  the  spirit  of  Laurence  be  still  upon  us,  at  home  and 
abroad.  Thousands  of  miles  of  ocean  lie  between  me  and  the 
land  of  my  birth  ;  between  you  and  the  land  of  your  best  recol- 
lections, your  truest  aspirations,  and  your  strongest  love.  But, 
whether  at  home  or  abroad,  whether  upon  the  green  hillside, 
with  its  shamrocks  covering  the  graves  of  the  saints,  or  upon 
the  splendid  shores  of  this  mighty  continent,  oh !  may  the 
spirit  of  Laurence  be  still  your  inheritance  and  mine,  and  that 
we  may  sanctify  ourselves  in  our  love  for  our  religion  and  for 
our  faith,  and  that  we  may  sanctify  ourselves  before  God  and 
the  world,  in  our  love  for  the  green  land  that  bore  us,  and  that 
holy  religion  handed  down  to  us — the  most  magnificent  history 
that  ever  yet  was  the  heritage  of  an  afflicted  people. 


THE  IMPORTANCE  OF   PRAYER. 


[Sermon  preached  in  the  Church  of  St.  Vincent  Ferrer,  May  5th,  1872.] 

"  Hitherto  you  have  not  asked  anything  in  My  name  ;  ask  and  you  shall  receive, 
that  your  joy  may  be  full." 

OU  are  aware,  dear  brethren,  that  next  Thursday  will 
be  the  feast  of  the  Ascension,  consequently  we  are 
drawing  near  that  mystical  moment  when  the  earth 
lost  sight  of  the  visible  presence  of  the  Saviour.  We 
may,  therefore,  say,  that  these  are  the  last  words  that  we  shall 
hear  from  Him  in  His  bodily  presence — the  last  Gospel  that 
the  Church  puts  before  us,  while  she  commemorates  His  pres- 
ence before  His  ascension.  And  it  is  worthy  of  remark  that 
she  selects  for  this  last  utterance  of  our  divine  Lord,  precisely 
that  which  was  the  subject-matter  of  His  first  utterance.  He 
was  thirty  years  upon  the  earth  before  He  spoke  to  man  ;  before 
He  preached  ;  before  He  announced  Himself  to  man ;  and 
when,  at  the  end  of  thirty  years,  He  opened  His  mouth  to 
preach  His  first  sermon,  the  gospel  tells  us  that  the  subject- 
matter  of  that  sermon  was  prayer;  for  He  went  up  into  the 
mountain  and  taught  the  people  to  pray — (so  says  the  Evan- 
gelist)— saying  :  "  Thus  shall  you  pray  ;  "  and  He  delivered  the 
"  Lord's  Prayer,"  as  it  is  called,  which  was  the  first  sermon  of 
Christ. 

Now,  we  come  to  His  last  utterance  before  He  ascended  into 
heaven.  He  said  to  His  apostles  :  "  I  am  about  to  leave  you, 
and  you  shall  see  Me  no  longer.  Mark,  therefore,  the  words 
I  have  to  say  to  you.  Pray  in  My  name.  Hitherto  you  have 
not  done  so  ;  ask  and  you  shall  receive,  that  your  joy  may  be 
full." 

Behold  then,  dearly  beloved  brethren,  the  importance  that 
Christ  our  Lord  and  His  holy  Church  attach  to  the  act  and  to 


The  Importa7ice  of  Prayer.  439 

the  exercise  of  prayer.  It  is  the  first  word  and  the  last ;  the 
first  teaching  and  the  last ;  the  first  precept  and  the  last  in- 
junction of  our  divine  Saviour.  Why  all  this?  Because  of  the 
absolute  necessity  and  the  immense  advantage  and  privilege 
of  prayer.  The  absolute  necessity  of  prayer  arises,  dearly  be- 
loved, from  its  inherent  and  intrinsic  connection  with  divine 
grace.  You  know  that  without  the  grace  of  God  no  man  can 
be  saved.  "  By  the  grace  of  God,"  says  St.  Paul,  "  I  am  what 
I  am.  Of  myself  alone  I  am  nothing,  I  can  do  nothing ;  but  I 
can  do  all  things  in  Him  that  strengtheneth  me  by  His  divine 
grace."  The  whole  question,  therefore,  of  man's  salvation,  de- 
pends upon  the  grace  of  Almighty  God.  He  that  has  it  and 
treasures  it,  shall  be  saved  ;  and  he  who,  not  having  it,  seeks  it 
and  finds  it,  shall  find  salvation.  He  that  is  without  it  shall  be 
lost  inevitably.  We  cannot  so  much  as  even  mention  the  name 
of  Jesus  as  He  ought  to  be  spoken  of,  except  in  the  spirit  and 
in  the  grace  of  God. 

Such  being  the  absolute  necessity  of  divine  grace,  it  was  in 
order  that  we  might  have  this — in  order  to  obtain  it  for  us — 
that  the  Eternal  God  came  down  from  heaven  and  was  Incarnate 
of  the  Holy  Ghost  and  the  Virgin  Mary,  and  was  made  man, 
"that  where  sin  previously  abounded,  grace  should  abound  still 
more."  That  grace  of  God  which  was  denied  to  man  could 
only  be  obtained  by  the  blood  of  Christ ;  and,  therefore,  gen- 
erously, lavishly,  did  He  pour  forth  His  blood  that  all  men 
might  find  grace,  and  find  it  in  abundance.  Such  was  the  price 
which  was  paid,  that  the  sacred  and  saving  blood  that  was  shed 
upon  Calvary  might  open  the  whole  treasury  of  heaven  to  man. 
Nor  is  there  a  grace  in  the  Father's  gift  too  high,  too  great,  too 
magnificent  to  be  out  of  the  reach  of  the  humblest  among  us. 

But  to  the  graces  thus  absolutely  necessary  to  salvation,  our 
Lord  Himself  has  attached  one  essential  and  indispensable  con- 
dition ;  and  that  condition  is  prayer.  Do  you  stand  in  need 
of  grace?  He  says  :  *' Ask  and  you  shall  receive  it  ;  seek  and 
you  shall  find  it  ;  knock  at  the  door  of  the  treasury  of  God's 
graces  ;  and,  My  infallible  word  for  it,  that  door  shall  be  opened 
unto  you."  On  the  other  hand,  we  have  the  authority  of  the 
Scriptures  that  the  man  who  prays  not  for  grace  shall  not 
obtain  grace.  When  some  of  the  early  Christians  complained 
of  the  strength  of  their  passions,  of  the  presence  of  sin  and 


440  The  Importance  of  Prayer. 

misery  in  the  midst  of  them,  St.  Paul  told  them  emphatically 
that  all  these  things  were  to  be  accounted  for  by  the  absence 
of  grace.  But  he  added :  **  Therefore,  you  have  not  received 
it,  because  you  have  not  asked  it."  What  follows  from  all 
this  ?  Simply  this  chain  of  reasoning — without  grace  there  is 
no  salvation.  Without  prayer  there  is  no  grace  ;  therefore, 
without  prayer  there  is  no  salvation  for  man.  Wherefore,  the 
wisest  and  the  greatest  of  theologians,  St.  Thomas  Aquinas, 
says  it  is  impossible  for  a  Christian  to  be  saved  without 
prayer. 

Behold,  then,  the  necessity  of  prayer.  It  is  necessary  as  a 
means ;  it  is  necessary  as  an  indispensable  condition  to  salva- 
tion ;  and,  if  you  wish  to  know  whether  you  are  in  the  way  of 
God,  or  in  the  way  of  salvation,  ask  yourself:  "  Do  I  pray;  do 
I  know  how  to  pray;  do  I  practise  prayer  ;  do  I  love  prayer?  " 
And  the  answer  to  that  question  will  be  the  answer  to  the  more 
important  question,  "  Am  I  in  the  way  of  salvation,  or  am  I 
not?" 

But,  dearly  beloved,  a  thing  may  be  necessary  not  only  as  a 
means,  but  it  may  be  necessary  as  a  command  of  God.  There 
are  many  things  that  are  not  necessary  in  themselves  to  salva- 
tion ;  and  yet  they  are  necessary,  because  Almighty  God  com- 
mands them.  For  instance,  to  hear  mass  on  Sunday,  to  sanc- 
tify that  particular  day,  is  not  in  itself  necessary  to  salvation  ; 
it  is  necessary,  however,  because  God  laid  His  precept  upon  it. 
And  so,  in  like  manner,  prayer  is  not  only  necessary  as  a  means 
in  its  own  nature  indispensable,  but  it  is  also  necessary  as  a 
precept,  distinct  and  emphatic,  that  is  imposed  upon  us  by  Al- 
mighty God.  So  that — even  if  prayer  were  not  connected  with 
grace,  even  if  God  gave  His  graces  without  being  asked,  even 
if  He  had  never  bound  up  the  giving  of  His  graces  with  the 
condition  of  prayer — yet,  still,  because  of  the  emphatic  precept 
of  Christ,  prayer  would  be  necessary,  on  account  of  that  pre- 
cept, for  man's  salvation.  Where  in  the  Scriptures  do  we  find 
a  precept  more  frequently  and  emphatically  laid  down  than  that 
in  which  the  Saviour  says  :  "  You  must  pray  always."  "  Watch 
and  pray,"  He  says  elsewhere,  "  that  you  may  not  enter  into 
temptation."  "  I  say  to  you,  be  instant  in  prayer."  And  so 
the  apostle  repeats  the  command  of  his  Lord,  when  He  says : 
"  Pray  at  all   times,  lifting  up   your  hands  to   the   Father  of 


The  Importance  of  Prayer.  441 

grace."  Thus  do  we  behold  the  precept  enforcing  its  own 
necessity,  and  enjoining  that  which,  if  it  were  not  commanded, 
would  still  be  necessary  as  a  means,  because  of  its  indispensa- 
ble and  intrinsic  connection  with  divine  grace. 

I  need  not  tell  you,  dearly  beloved,  that  in  this,  as  in  every 
other  precept  of  Christ,  He  first  gave  the  example  before  He 
laid  down  the  command.  Before  He  told  the  people  that  they 
should  pray,  He  gave  them  the  example  of  His  own  prayer. 
He  who  stood  in  need  of  no  grace — for  He  was  the  fountain  of 
all  grace  himself-— yet,  for  our  example.  He  was  emphatically  a 
man  of  prayer  ;  and  when  He  had  labored  all  day  preaching  in 
the  Temple,  or  teaching ;  when  he  had  journeyed  all  day,  heal- 
ing the  sick,  comforting  the  afflicted,  raising  the  dead ;  when 
evening  came,  and  every  other  tired  laborer  sought  his  place 
of  rest  whereon  to  lay  His  head,  we  read  in  the  Gospel  that  our 
Lord  went,  then,  into  the  lonely  places,  or  that  He  ascended 
the  mountain-side,  or  that  He  went  into  the  depths  of  Geth- 
semane's  shades,  or  that  He  went  out  into  the  desert,  and 
spent  the  night  in  prayer  with  God.  Prayer  to  Him  was  the 
repose  of  His  soul ;  and  He  arose  from  His  prayer,  as  another 
man  from  His  bed  of  rest,  refreshed  and  renewed  in  all  His  di- 
vine strength,  to  pursue  the  same  work  of  man's  redemption  for 
which  He  came. 

Consider,  secondly,  the  excellence — the  importance  of  prayer. 
What  is  prayer?  "  It  is,"  says  St.  Augustine,  "  an  elevation  or 
an  uplifting  of  the  soul  to  God ;  it  is  an  act  of  personal  commu- 
nication with  God  ;  it  is  an  interview  between  the  soul  and  Al- 
mighty God ;  it  is  an  audience  that  the  King  of  Heaven  vouch- 
safes to  give  to  every  individual  man,  when  that  man  lifts  up 
his  voice  and  opens  his  lips  to  pray."  Now,  what  greater  privi- 
lege can  we  have,  as  the  creatures  of  God,  as  the  children  of 
God,  than  to  be  thus  able  at  any  moment  to  enter  into  the 
penetralia,  the  inner  chambers  of  our  Father's  heavenly  palace, 
and  there,  kneeling  down  before  Him,  speak  to  Him,  while  He, 
all  attention  to  our  words,  lends  His  ear  and  inclines  His  heart 
to  us ;  as  if  there  were  no  other  creature  in  existence,  save  and 
except  that  one  man  who  prays?  What  higher  privilege  can  a 
subject  have  than  to  have  the  right  of  entry  at  all  times  to  his 
sovereign  ?  What  greater  privilege  can  a  statesman,  even  of  the 
first  order,  or  a  great  general,  have,  than  that  the  head  of  the 


( 


442  The  Importance  of  Prayer. 

State,  or  emperor,  or  great  king,  should  permit  him  to  come  in 
at  all  times,  to  command  the  monarch's  attention,  and  to  com- 
municate with  him  freely  ?  Even  so  this  privilege  was  given  to 
us  by  our  divine  Lord,  when  He  gave  us  the  power  and  the  pre- 
cept of  prayer. 

Consider  again  our  special  privilege.  "  Hitherto,"  He  said  to 
His  apostles,  "you  have  not  asked  anything  in  My  name.  You 
have  prayed,  indeed ;  but  you  have  not  asked  in  my  name." 
"  Hitherto  ;  "  and  when  He  said  that  word.  His  thoughts  went 
out  into  the  dreary  past  of  four  thousand  years,  when  man  in- 
voked Almighty  God,  as  "the  God  of  Abraham,  the  God  of 
Isaac,  the  God  of  Jacob,"  but  they  could  not  appeal  to  Him  as 
their  own  immediate  Father  through  the  adoption  by  which  we 
were  made  His  sons  in  Jesus  Christ.  Many  names,  indeed,  did 
they  put  before  God  ;  but  the  magic  name,  the  omnipotent 
name  of  the  Man-God,  Jesus  Christ,  was  not  yet  upon  their 
lips.  Many  pleas  did  they  put  before  God — the  faith  of  Abra- 
ham, the  love  of  Jacob,  the  devotion  of  Israel,  the  meekness  of 
Daniel  and  Moses  ;  but  the  transcendent,  omnipotent,  grace- 
creating  merits  of  Jesus  Christ  were  not  yet  theirs  ;  nor  had  they 
"  hitherto  been  able  to  ask  in  His  name,  at  whose  sound  "  every 
knee  must  bend,  of  those  that  are  in  heaven,  upon  the  earth, 
and  even  in  hell."  This  is  our  privilege.  Now  He  said  to 
them,  "You  can  ask  in  My  name ;  and  whatever  you  ask  in  My 
name,  the  Father  will  grant  to  you."  For  how  can  the  Father 
refuse  the  Christian  man  that  which  he  demands  in  prayer, 
when  that  prayer  comes  up  to  the  Father's  throne  enshrined  in 
the  merits  and  enriched  by  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ. 

And  when  is  this  prayer,  of  which  I  speak,  necessary  ?  My 
brethren,  it  is  necessary  at  all  times.  According  to  the  word  of 
our  Lord  you  must  always  pray;  but  there  are  certain  moments 
when  that  which  is  at  all  times  necessary  becomes  a  matter  of 
vital  importance,  and  it  is  a  question  of  life  or  death  whether  we 
pray  or  neglect  to  pray.  There  are  moments  in  the  lives  of 
every  man  amongst  us — nay,  moments  in  every  day  of  our  lives 
— when  it  is  a  question  of  life  and  death  to  pray  or  to  neglect  to 
pray.  When  are  these  moments?  They  are  moments  of  temp- 
tation ;  moments  when  nature,  corrupt  in  us  all,  will  rise  in  de- 
fiance of  God  ;  moments  when  the  temptation  of  pride,  of  re- 
venge, or  some  other  glittering  temptation,  presents  itself  before 


The  Importance  of  Prayer.  443 

our  eyes  ;  moments  when  the  senses  speak  to  the  soul,  and  say : 
"  Now,  now  is  your  moment  for  enjoyment ;  forget  God."  That 
moment  it  is  a  question  of  life  or  death,  for  all  eternity,  whether 
a  man  prays  or  not.  Christ  appeared  upon  the  waters  walking. 
He  walked  upon  them,  naturally,  because  He  was  the  Lord  and 
Creator  of  them.  There  was  no  fear  for  Him  that  those  treach- 
erous waves  would  separate  and  swallow  Him  up.  Peter  saw 
his  Master ;  and  he  threw  himself  out  of  the  boat ;  and,  with 
fearful  and  uncertain  steps,  still  keeping  his  eye  on  Christ,  he 
followed  his  Lord.  That  which  was  so  easy  for  Christ  was  a 
perilous  undertaking  for  Peter.  According  to  every  law  of 
nature  the  mere  man  should  have  gone  down  into  the  depths, 
while  the  God-man  walked  upon  His  own  creation.  After  a 
time,  Peter  felt  that  the  water,  which  before  was  as  solid  as  the 
adamantine  rock  beneath  his  feet,  was  waving  to  and  fro  ;  he 
felt  the  unsteady  foundation  upon  which  he  walked ;  he  cast  his 
eyes  down,  and  he  saw  that  the  treacherous  waves  were  giving 
way,  and  that  he  was  sinking,  and  sinking  rapidly,  to  a  certain 
death.  Then  he  lifted  up  his  voice — his  great  danger  prompt- 
ing him  to  the  action  of  prayer — "  Lord,  save  me,  or  I  perish  !  " 
The  next  moment  Peter's  hand  was  in  the  hand  of  Christ ;  the 
man  was  raised  from  out  his  danger ;  and  the  moving  waters  be- 
neath him  became  again  as  solid  as  the  firm  earth  or  the  rock 
upon  the  mountain-side.  A  bright  example  of  the  power  and 
the  necessity  of  prayer ! 

Christ  in  his  God-like  nature  stands  before  us  ;  and  to  every 
man  amongst  us  He  says  :  "  Follow  me.  If  any  man  wishes 
to  be  saved,  let  him  come  after  Me.  Follow  Me."  "  Whither 
wilt  Thou  lead  us,  O  Son  of  God  ?  "  Over  the  troubled  waters, 
over  the  treacherous  waves  of  our  own  nature  ;  in  paths  of 
purity  and  of  power  ;  in  paths  of  divine  virtue  must  we  follow 
Christ,  triumphing  over  all  the  baser  instincts  and  vile  passions 
of  our  corporeal  nature  ;  triumphing  over  our  pride  and  our  pas- 
sions ;  or  walking  upon  these  waters  of  humanity — treacherous, 
death-dealing  to  all  who  sink  beneath  them ;  over  these,  with 
the  firm  tread  of  the  man  of  faith,  must  we  walk  and  follow  the 
Son  of  God.  But,  my  friends,  whenever  that  rebellious  nature 
stirs  us ;  whenever,  in  moments  of  temptation,  we  find  the  ground 
beneath  us  trembling  ;  whenever  we  find  we  are  sinking — rapid- 
ly, rapidly  losing  sight  of  Christ — sinking  into  some  hideous 


444  The  Importance  of  Prayer. 

form  of  sin,  then,  O  young  man,  cry,  "  Lord,  save  me,  or  I  per- 
ish !  "  If  that  cry  escapes  from  your  heart  or  your  lips,  the  next 
moment  will  find  you  with  your  hand  in  the  strong  hand  of  the 
Son  of  God. 

If  Peter  had  been  silent  in  that  hour — if  Peter  had  not  prayed 
in  that  hour — the  next  moment  the  waters  would  have  closed  over 
his  head,  and  the  eyes  of  Christ  would  have  beheld  him  no  lon- 
ger; he  would  have  sunk  out  of  his  Master's  sight.  Oh,  dearly 
beloved,  how  often  has  the  young  soul  sunk  out  of  the  Master's 
sight,  because  that  soul  was  silent !  Well  may  each  and  every 
one  of  us,  looking  back  to  some  black,  terrible  spot  in  our  past 
life — recalling  some  recollection  that  brings  shame  to  our  faces, 
and  perhaps,  if  God  grants  it,  a  tear  of  bitter  regret  to  our  eyes 
— looking  back  upon  those  moments  when  temptation  assailed 
us,  and  when  we  yielded — well  may  we  exclaim,  "  Woe  is  me,  O 
God,  because  I  kept  my  peace  and  was  silent." 

But  it  is  not  only  for  the  man  who  is  walking  upon  the  waves, 
in  sight  of  his  Master — it  is  not  only  for  the  man  who  is  tread- 
ing the  dangerous  path  of  Christian  morality — walking  and 
trampling  upon  the  elements  of  his  own  passions  and  his  own 
selfishness — it  is  not  only  for  such  a  one  that  prayer  is  necessary, 
and  is  at  once  his  comfort,  his  assurance,  and  his  highest  privi- 
lege. It  is  also  necessary  for,  and  the  only  privilege  of,  the  man 
who  has  sunk  beneath  the  waves.  Peter  cried  from  the  surface, 
"  Lord,  save  me,  or  I  perish  !  "  He  cried  in  time.  But,  dearly 
beloved,  for  our  comfort  there  is  another  cry  recorded  in  the 
Scriptures  ;  and  that  is  the  cry  of  him  who  said  :  "  Out  of  the 
depths  I  have  cried  unto  Thee,  O  Lord ;  Lord,  hear  my  voice." 
Over  David's  head  had  closed  the  angry,  terrible,  deadly  sea  of 
impurity  and  injustice  ;  upon  David's  soul  had  fallen  the  warm 
drops  of  Uriah's  blood,  unjustly  shed  ;  down  into  the  depths  of 
malediction,  down  into  the  depths  of  God's  anger,  went  this 
man  ;  nothing  remained  to  him  but  the  last  and  the  only  privi- 
lege of  the  sinner. 

"  O  God  !  "  exclaimed  holy  Job,  in  his  deepest  misery,  "  noth- 
ing is  left  to  me  but  the  lips  that  are  above  my  teeth."  "Much 
is  left  to  thee,  O  Job,"  exclaimed  the  great  St.  Gregory  ;  "much 
is  left  to  thee  in  thy  misery,  because  there  is  left  to  thee  the 
power  of  using  t'hy  lips  in  prayer."  And  so,  out  of  the  depths 
of  his    misery,  of  his  sins,  of  his  degradation,  came  the  voice, 


The  Importance  of  Prayer.  445 

and  it  reached  Almighty  God.  "  If  thou,  O  Lord,  observest 
iniquity.  Lord,  who  shall  sustain  it  ?  "  The  same  voice  that 
thus  spoke  commemorated  afterwards  in  joyful  accents  the  an- 
swer to  the  prayer.  "  Blessed  be  God  !  "  exclaimed  David,  "  who 
did  not  remove  my  prayer  nor  His  mercy  from  me." 

It  is  the  last  and  the  only  privilege  of  the  sinner.  All  is  gone 
except  prayer.  His  works  are  gone  ;  for,  in  his  sin,  if  he  give 
all  that  he  hath  to  the  poor,  and  deliver  his  body  to  be  burned, 
if  he  has  not  charity,  it  profits  him  nothing.  His  talents  are 
gone.  "  If  I  speak  as  with  the  tongues  of  men  and  angels,  and 
have  not  charity,  I  am  but  as  sounding  brass  and  a  tinkling 
cymbal."  The  merits  of  his  life  are  gone.  "  If  the  just  man  shall 
turn  away  from  his  justice,  so  as  to  work  iniquity,  I  shall  not  re- 
member the  justice  which  he  has  wrought,"  says  the  Lord.  His 
future,  therefore,  seems  to  be  gone.  There  is  no  peace,  no  com- 
fort, no  joy,  either  in  time  or  eternity,  for  the  sinner.  All  is  gone 
except  the  power  to  cry,  even  from  within  the  very  depths,  and 
to  send  forth  a  prayer  for  mercy  to  Almighty  God.  And  so  we 
see  that,  in  His  mercy  and  goodness,  he  left  one  thing,  even  to 
the  sinner.  And  the  sinner  can  never  be  said  to  be  utterly  aban- 
doned, until  he  despises  and  utterly  ignores  the  virtue  of  prayer. 

Ask  yourselves,  then,  dearly  beloved,  are  we  men  of  prayer  ? 
How  many  there  are.  Catholics  even — good  men,  apparently — 
who  content  themselves  with  a  hurried  prayer  in  the  morning 
after  rising,  and  a  hurried  prayer  at  night  before  they  go  to  bed  ; 
scarcely  thinking  of  what  they  say  ;  never  raising  their  souls  to 
God  ;  never  humbling  themselves  before  God.  There  is  neither 
earnestness  nor  fixedness  of  purpose,  neither  humility  nor  confi- 
dence in  their  prayer.  What  do  the  Scriptures  say  of  such 
prayer?  "  These  people  call  upon  Me  with  their  lips  ;  but  their 
hearts  are  far  from  Me."  And  if  we  find  that,  hitherto,  we  have 
not  asked  the  Father  in  the  name  of  His  divine  Son,  as  we 
should,  then  let  us,  in  God's  name,  recognize  the  necessity,  the 
importance,  and  the  privilege  of  prayer.  And  blessed  shall  we 
be  if,  at  the  hour  of  our  death,  even  with  our  dying  lips,  we  are 
able  to  say,  in  the  words  of  David :  "  Blessed  be  God,  who  re- 
moved not  my  prayer,  nor  His  mercy  from  Me." 


NO  SALVATION   OUTSIDE  THE 
CATHOLIC  CHURCH. 


[Preached  in  St.  Michael's  Church,  New  York,  Sunday  evening,  October  20,  1872.] 

Y  FRIENDS  :  The  subject  upon  which  I  have  chosen 
to  address  you  this  evening  is  a  most  important  one. 
The  question  which  most  nearly  concerns  every  man 
in  this  world,  is  the  question  which  the  people  asked 
the  apostles  on  the  day  of  Pentecost :  "  What  shall  I  do  in 
order  to  be  saved  ? "  There  is  before  ever}'-  man  a  double 
future— the  future  of  time  and  the  future  of  eternity — a  future 
made  up  of  the  few,  passing,  fleeting  hours  of  time,  with  their 
burdens  of  joy  or  of  sorrow.  But  whether,  indeed,  they  be 
crowned  with  every  delight — like  the  lives  of  those  reprobates 
of  Scripture  who  filled  every  valley  with  their  pleasures,  and 
who  denied  themselves  nothing — or  whether,  on  the  other  hand, 
this  future  of  time  be  a  period  of  suffering  unmingled  with  joy, 
of  sorrow  and  of  misery,  it  matters  but  little.  Life  is  so  fleet- 
ing, time  flies  by  so  rapidly,  it  remains  with  us  for  so  brief  a 
moment,  that  it  really  matters  little  whether  that  moment  be 
made  up  of  joy  or  of  sorrow,  of  misery  or  delight.  For  instance, 
how  small  and  insignificant  to  the  man  of  pleasure,  how  worth- 
less and  scarcely  deserving  even  the  tribute  of  a  passing  remem- 
brance, are  all  the  pleasures  and  the  joys  of  a  man  of  the  world 
when  he  lies  there  agonizing  upon  his  death-bed,  reviewing  in  a 
moment  the  brief  and  passing  pleasures  that  he  enjoyed,  bidding 
them  a  last  farewell,  and  then  turning  with  uncertain  and  with 
gloomy  eyes  to  contemplate  the  mighty  eternity  that  is  before 
him !  How  little  to  the  greatest  saints  and  to  those  miracles  of 
penance  which  the  Catholic  Church  has  nourished — how  little 
and  how  trifling  to  them  did  all  their  mortifications  and  all  their 


No  Salvation  Outside  the  Catholic  Church.  447 

labors  appear,  when,  for  one  instant,  they  thought  upon  these 
things  as  they  were  dying.  They  were  all  now  gone,  swept 
away  upon  the  wings  of  time,  and  nothing  remained  of  their 
bitterness  ;  but  all  was  changed  into  the  hope  of  future  glory 
and  joy  that  should  never  know  end.  When  St.  Theresa 
was  in  prayer,  her  friend,  St.  Peter  of  Alcantara,  passed  away 
from  this  life.  For  more  than  fifty  years  he  had  restrained 
every  passion,  guarded  every  sense,  denied  himself  every  joy, 
and  made,  indeed,  his  life  upon  this  earth  a  real  crucifixion  of 
that  body  in  which  he  served  God.  And  whilst  the  holy  nun 
of  Avala  was  in  her  prayer,  suddenly  a  great  light  appeared 
before  her,  she  lifted  up  her  eyes  and  saw  the  familiar  face  of 
her  old  Franciscan  friend.  But,  oh  !  how  changed  it  was  !  No 
longer  the  emaciated  face  worn  away  with  fasting,  no  longer 
the  cheeks  furrowed  by  the  constant  tears  of  repentance  which 
flowed  from  his  eyes,  no  longer  the  eyes  languid  and  weak  from 
loss  of  sleep  and  of  rest.  No !  but  the  brightness  of  heaven 
was  around  him,  and  it  seemed  to  her  as  if  all  that  this  world 
had  of  light  came  forth  from  him,  and  he  said  to  her :  "  Oh, 
Theresa  !  Now,  now,  in  the  first  moment  of  my  joy,  I  realize 
how  happy  was  the  penance,  and  mortifications,  and  the  sorrow 
that  brought  me  so  great  a  return." 

This  future  of  time,  then,  is  of  little  or  no  account,  but  beyond 
the  grave  lies  the  future  of  an  eternity  that  shall  never  know 
end.  When  years  shall  have  swelled  into  ages,  when  ages  shall 
have  rolled  into  millions  and  myriads  of  ages,  when  the  mind 
shall  have  spent  itself  in  trying  to  measure  eternity  by  its  own 
ideas  of  time,  then  will  that  eternity  have  only  just  begun  for  the 
ages  to  last  forever  and  forever.  It  is  the  life  of  God.  In  that 
eternity  lies  the  solution  of  the  problem  of  what  our  place  shall 
be.  Where  shall  we  find  our  place  in  that  unending  eternity 
that  is  before  us ?  Once  created  we  cannot  die;  our  destiny 
is  to  live  forever,  and  to  share  in  the  immortality  of  the  God 
who  made  us.  Oh,  then,  who  will  tell  me  whether  my  portion 
for  the  unending  years  is  to  be  the  brightness  of  heaven's 
glory,  or  the  everlasting  flames  of  hell !  O  God  !  my  soul 
within  me,  my  heart,  trembles  with  fear  to  think  that  there 
is  even  a  chance — a  probability,  I  need  not  say — but  even  a 
chance,  or  a  fear  that  I  may  lose  this  soul  of  mine,  and  that 
this  soul  of  mine  shall  be  cast  away  from  the  sight  and  enjoy- 


44^  No  Salvation  outside  the  Catholic  Church. 

ment  of  God  forever.  It  was  this  thought  of  God  that 
frightened  the  servants  of  God  at  all  times.  It  was  the  pos- 
sibility of  being  damned,  cast  away  from  God,  that  made 
David  look  with  such  fearful  eyes  on  that  future  of  time  which 
was  before  him.  Turning  to  God,  he  cried :  "  Woe  is  me 
because  my  pilgrimage  here  is  prolonged."  Therefore  the 
most  important  question  that  any  man  can  ask  himself  or 
his  fellow-men,  is:  How  am  I  to  be  saved?  What  shall  I  do 
to  be  saved  ? 

Now,  I  come  here  this  evening,  not  without  authority,  not 
speaking  for  myself  at  all,  but  speaking  the  doctrines  of  the 
Holy  Roman  Catholic  Church,  and  I  say  that  all-important  as 
the  question  of  salvation  is  in  the  designs  of  God,  there  is,  as 
a  rule,  no  salvation  outside  of  the  Catholic  Church.     At  first 
sight  this  proposition  seems  to  be  the  quintessence  of  bigotry. 
If  there  were  one  here  to-night  not  a  Catholic,  that  man  might 
probably,  in  a  bitter  moment,  say,  "  Thou  speakest  well  the 
language  of  thine  order,  oh,  persecuting  monk  of  the  thirteenth 
century.     Oh,  thou,  who  hast  cast  out  from  thy  monkish  heart 
all  love  for  thy  fellow-men  !     Thou  who  learned  the  bad  lesson 
that  the  heart,  in  order  to  be  sacred  to  God,  must  be  a  hard, 
unloving  heart."      Such  thoughts   might   pass   through   their 
minds ;  and   it  may  sound,  and   it  does  sound,  in  the  ears  of 
men  to-day.  as  the  very  quintessence  of  bigotry  and  cruelty,  to 
say  calmly,  after  considering  what  it  is  to  be  saved  and  what 
it   is  to  be  lost  forever,  that  there  is  no  salvation  outside  the 
Catholic  Church.    But,  my  friends,  it  is  only  one  of  those  truths 
that  must  be  appreciated,   recognized,    and   acknowledged  by 
the  mind  of  every  man.     What  does  this  proposition  mean, 
There  is    no    salvation    outside    the     Catholic    Church?      It 
means  simply  this,  that  the  Almighty  God  has  made  as  an  es- 
sential condition   for  the  salvation   of  a  man's  soul  that  that 
man  should  know  the  sacred  truths  that  God  has  taught.     That 
he  should  know  the  truth — the  truth,  not  a  travesty  of  the  truth, 
no  mere  crooked  opinions  of  his  own  mind,  which  he  mistakes 
for  the  truth  ;  no   mere  prejudices,  or  distorted  views  of  the 
truth,  but  the  truth  as  it  is  in  God,  as  it  is  revealed  by  Almighty 
God,  as  it  is  in  Jesus  Christ.     The  knowledge  of  that  truth  the 
Almighty  God   demands   as  the   necessary  condition   for  sal- 
vation. 


No  Salvation  outside  the  Catholic  Church.  449 

In  order  to  prove  this,  it  is  not  necessary,  my  dear  friends, 
to  rely  simply  and  entirely  on  the  word  of  Scripture  ;  the  Scrip- 
ture expressed  the  same  ;  but  before  we  come  to  any  evidence 
of  Scripture,  by  the  mere  light  of  human  reason,  I  ask  you  to 
consider  this  proposition.  We  know  that  God  made  all  things. 
We  know,  moreover,  that  God  made  all  things  for  Himself. 
Human  reason  tells  us  that  a  God  of  infinite  perfection,  as  well 
as  of  infinite  power,  could  not  make  anything  for  any  other  ob- 
ject but  for  Himself;  because  the  act  of  creation  is  the  exercise 
of  omnipotent  power,  and  God,  being  infinite  wisdom,  could 
not  exercise  omnipotence,  except  for  a  motive  as  great  as  the  om- 
nipotence itself.  God  being  infinite  wisdom  could  not  create  by 
this  power,  except  for  an  object  as  great  as  that  power.  If  there 
must  be,  because  of  the  wisdom  of  God,  an  exact  proportion  be- 
tween the  motive  which  God  has  in  view,  and  the  act  which  He 
proposes,  an  act  without  an  adequate  motive  would  be  imper- 
fect and  unwise;  therefore,  God  could  not  do  it.  If,  then,  my 
dearly  beloved,  the  Almighty  God  puts  forth  in  the  act  of  crea- 
tion the  full  omnipotence  of  His  power,  the  object  for  which 
He  creates  must  be  great  as  the  act  which  makes ;  and  no- 
where can  God  find  that  object  except  in  Himself;  for  God  is 
infinite — infinitely  holy,  infinitely  perfect,  God  alone.  There- 
fore, by  the  light  of  reason,  a  God  of  infinite  wisdom  could  not 
create  anything  except  for  Himself. 

He  has,  moreover,  revealed  this  to  us.  "God  made  every- 
thing for  Himself,"  says  the  inspired  writer,  and  all  the 
creations  of  God  are  thus  created  for  God,  thus  bound  by  the 
very  elements  of  their  nature  and  of  their  being  to  tend  to  that 
God  for  whom  they  are  made.  All  things  come  to  Him  after 
the  manner  of  the  nature  which  He  has  given  them.  Things 
that  have  no  reason  fulfill  the  end  of  their  creation  without 
reason.  Things  that  have  no  life  or  feeling  fulfill  the  ends  of 
their  dormant  existence  without  the  exercise  of  life  or  feeling. 
Creatures  that  have  reason,  creatures  that  have  intelligence, 
creatures  that  have  intellect,  mind,  and  soul,  must  go  to  God 
and  approach  God  through  the  exercise  of  that  reason,  intelli- 
gence, mind,  and  soul.  God  made  all  things  for  Himself.  Did 
He  make  man  then  for  Himself?  Most  certainly.  For  Him- 
self ?  What  does  this  mean  ?  That  man  should  return  to  God 
who  made  him.     The  way  of  God  lies  through  the  intelligence 

29 


450  No  Salvation  outside  the  Catholic  Church. 

of  the  human  soul.  God  is  infinite  wisdom.  God  is  power 
and  knowledge — the  spirit  endowed  with  the  power  and  the 
knowledge  must  meet  God  through  knowledge.  There  is  no 
other  way.  The  way  of  sense  will  not  lead  to  Him  ;  the  way 
of  the  inferior  nature  of  man  will  not  lead  to  God.  It  is  the 
soul,  capable  of  knowing,  that  must  spring  to  the  principle  of 
all  knowledge.  And,  therefore,  by  the  light  of  reason  do  we 
see  that  the  knowledge  of  truth  is  a  necessity  for  man — a  neces- 
sary condition  for  his  salvation.  Take  a  man  utterly  unin- 
structed  and  uneducated  ;  take  a  child  and  shut  him  out  from 
every  element  of  knowledge,  human  or  divine.  Is  there  a  man 
on  the  face  of  God's  earth,  Christian  or  pagan,  who  will  say 
that  that  child  is  fit  for  the  salvation  which  consists  in  an  act 
of  intellect  comprehending  God?  Not  comprehending  Him 
fully,  for  only  an  infinite  intellect  can  do  that,  but  compre- 
hending and  contemplating  God  to  the  full  extent  of  every 
power  of  intellect  that  God  has  given  to  man.  No  ;  knowledge 
is  a  necessary  preparation  on  earth  for  the  sight  of  the  beatific 
vision  in  heaven,  and,  therefore,  the  Almighty  God  has  laid 
down  knowledge  as  a  necessary  condition  of  the  human  intel- 
lect for  all  purposes  in  this  world,  as  well  as  for  the  purposes 
of  eternity. 

But  what  kind  of  knowledge  does  the  Almighty  God  demand 
for  salvation  ?  The  knowledge  of  Himself,  as  He  has  revealed 
Himself — the  knowledge  as  it  is  in  the  mind  of  God.  Re- 
member, my  friends,  that  no  knowledge  is  worthy  of  God 
unless  it  be  the  knowledge  of  the  truth  ;  and  no  knowledge  is 
worthy  of  God,  nor  can  be  the  means  of  approach  to  God,  unless 
that  knowledge  be  based  upon  a  certainty  in  the  divine  author- 
ity of  the  God  who  gave  it.  If,  therefore,  as  we  see,  a  knowl- 
edge of  the  truth  be  necessary,  the  next  great  question  is, 
Where  is  that  truth  of  God  to  be  found  ?  Where  is  it  to  be 
found  ?  Remember,  there  are  certain  attributes  that  belong  to 
the  truth  and  that  are  inseparable  from  its  nature,  even  human 
truth.  The  first  of  these  is  unity.  The  truth,  wherever  it  is, 
must  be  one.  Take,  for  instance,  my  friends,  historical  truth. 
One  man  asserts  that  an  event  happened  in  such  a  year,  another 
man  says  that  it  did  not  happen  then,  but  in  some  other  year. 
Now,  must  not  some  one  or  other  of  these  be  wrong,  and  that 
of  necessity?    The  thing  happened  in  one  of  these  periods,  and 


No  Salvation  outside  the  Catholic  Church.  451 

one,  of  necessity,  must  be  wrong,  for  the  reason  that  the  other 
is  right.  Why  ?  Because  you  can't  divide  the  truth  ;  you  can't 
compromise  the  truth.  You  can't  say  of  anything:  "Well,  it 
is  more  or  less  true  ;"  of  any  positive  assertion,  "  it  is  either  true 
or  it  is  false."  If  any  amount  of  falsehood  creeps  into  it,  it  so 
far  deviates  from  the  standard  of  perfect  knowledge  of  the  truth. 
Unity,  therefore,  is  the  very  first  principle  of  truth. 

Where  is  truth  to  be  found  ?  Has  God  spoken  His  own  ipse 
dixit?  Where  is  His  word  to  be  found?  The  Protestant  an- 
swers, in  the  Bible.  The  Catholic  answers,  in  the  Bible,  only  so 
far  as  that  Bible  is  interpreted  by  the  authority  of  God,  invested 
in  the  living  voice  of  the  Church.  Which  of  these  propositions 
is  true?  Remember,  it  is  a  question  of  salvation,  my  dear  chil- 
dren. Remember,  that  the  Almighty  God,  as  we  have  seen  by 
the  light  of  reason,  has  made  the  knowledge  of  the  truth  the 
natural  means  by  which  man  is  to  approach  Him;  that,  more- 
over, He  has  added  to  that  light  of  reason  His  own  express 
word,  that  the  ignorance  of  the  truth  is  in  itself  a  sufificient  rea- 
son for  man's  never  beholding  God.  God  has  said  this.  He 
has  said,  "  This  is  the  will  of  God,  that  all  men  should  be  saved, 
and  should  come  to  the  knowledge  of  the  truth."  Therefore, 
if  they  do  not  come  to  the  knowledge  of  the  truth,  they  cannot 
be  saved.  Thus,  where  it  is  said,  "  You  shall  know  the  truth, 
and  the  truth  shall  make  you  free."  Therefore,  where  the 
knowledge  of  the  truth  does  not  exist,  there  is  no  freedom ;  but 
in  heaven  all  is  freedom.  Therefore,  without  a  knowledge  of  the 
truth,  as  a  rule,  there  is  no  salvation.  Thus,  where  the  apostle 
expressly  says,  "  And  if  any  man  be  ignorant,  he  shall  be  ig- 
nored," what  does  that  mean  ?  It  means  that  he  shall  be 
cast  out  of  the  thought,  out  of  the  mind  of  God.  In  other 
words,  that  he  shall  not  be  saved.  It  is  therefore  a  question  of 
salvation.  Which  of  these  two  propositions  is  true  :  That  the 
Bible  alone,  without  note,  and  without  the  living  voice  to  ex- 
plain it,  holds  the  truth,  the  whole  truth,  and  nothing  but  the 
truth — the  truth  expounded,  through  its  only  channel,  to  man  ; 
or  that  that  Bible  requires  the  exposition  and  the  guardianship 
of  a  voice  authorized  by  the  Almighty  God  to  explain  it?  I 
answer,  that  the  Bible  alone  cannot  be  the  medium  for  giving 
divine  truth  in  such  a  way  as  to  make  the  knowledge  of  that 
truth  the  salvation  of  men,  for  the  simple  reason  that  truth  lies 


452  No  Salvation  outside  the  Catholic  Church. 

in  the  Bible  without  note  or  comment,  without  the  voice  of  the 
Church  to  explain  it.  In  the  truth  in  the  Bible  alone  lies  the 
first  essential  attribute  of  truth,  which  is  unity.  The  Episco- 
palian sees  in  the  text  of  the  Bible,  Protestantism.  The  Calvin- 
ist  sees  in  the  same  text,  Calvinism,  and  Calvinism  means  some- 
thing very  different  from  Protestantism.  The  Baptist,  the 
Methodist,  or  any  other  ist,  sees  his  own  view  there.  The 
Unitarian  comes  and  sees  his  view.  The  Voltaires  and  the  in- 
fidels come,  and  they  see  in  the  Bible  something  that  tells  them 
that  there  is  no  God.  Are  they  all  right,  or  are  they  all  wrong? 
Can  they  all  be  right  ?  When  Martin  Luther  said  that  the 
Bible  proved  to  him  that  faith  was  the  element  of  justification 
alone  without  good  works — when  he  refused  to  admit  good  works 
into  the  scheme  of  God,  for  the  justification  of  men — he  con- 
tradicted a  view  that  was  taken  from  that  Bible  for  fifteen 
hundred  years  without  a  dissenting  voice. 

Can  the  Bible,  then,  be  the  only  element — the  only  vehicle  and 
channel  of  divine  truth,  out  of  which  men  justify  the  wildest  things 
that  can  come  into  their  heads  ?  It  will  not  do  to  say  :  *'  Ah  !  they 
justify  their  opinions  by  distorting  texts  of  the  Bible,  and  put- 
ting false  interpretations  upon  it.  The  very  fact  of  their  doing 
this,  does  it  not  exhibit  that  the  Bible  alone  does  not  represent 
that  eternal  and  essential  unity  that  belongs  to  the  truth  ? 
Wherever  the  truth  is,  it  is  one ;  where  God  gave  the  truth, 
He  gave  one  truth.  Nay,  more,  if  God  demands  the  knowl- 
edge of  the  truth.  He  demands  the  knowledge  of  the  one  truth. 
Therefore,  He  must  have  given  a  sufficient  means  of  arriving 
at  the  knowledge  of  the  one  truth.  Men  who  have  the  Bible 
alone  arrive  at  twenty  different  versions  of  the  truth,  and  each 
one  calls  his  own  idea  the  truth.  Therefore,  the  Almighty 
God  did  not  sufficiently  provide  for  the  wants  of  man's  salva- 
tion when  He  left  that  Bible  to  the  exposition  of  every  wild, 
and  perhaps  fanatical,  reader  who  reads  it.  The  principle  on 
which  I  speak  has  had  a  fair  trial.  This  book  has  been  in  the 
hands,  for  three  hundred  years,  of  the  generations  of  men  who 
threw  off  the  authority  of  the  Church,  and  refused  to  hear  her 
explaining  voice.  They  said :  "  We  have  the  Bible,  and  that  is 
sufficient  for  us."  So,  for  three  hundred  years,  they  have  tried 
the  experiment  in  the  world :  the  Bible  alone  was  sufficient. 

Has  that  experiment  been  a  success  or  a  failure  ?     Truth  is 


No  Salvation  outside  the  Catholic  Church.  453 

one.  Have  men,  acting  upon  that  experiment  and  on  that 
principle — have  they  arrived  at  unity  ?  No !  Up  to  the  time 
of  the  declaration  of  Protestantism,  three  hundred  years  ago — 
up  to  the  time  that  that  form  of  religion  sprung  up,  which  was 
based  upon  the  Bible  alone,  rejecting  any  living  infallible  au- 
thority to  explain  it — up  to  that  time,  whatever  Christianity 
might  have  been,  it  meant  but  one  thing ;  the  people,  at  any- 
rate,  were  not  divided.  It  may  be  said,  but  falsely  said,  that 
they  were  taught  superstition  ;  it  may  be  said  that  they  were 
taught  priestcraft — thousands  of  such  charges  may  be  made  ; 
but  one  thing  cannot  be  said — that  they  were  divided.  Chris- 
tianity meant  one  idea,  one  thought,  one  thing,  until  the  prin- 
ciple came  in  that  the  Bible  alone  was  a  sufficient  guide  into 
the  truth  of  God  which  is  necessary  for  salvation.  Since  the 
day  that  that  principle  was  adopted,  sects  have  gone  on  and 
multiplied  themselves  until  their  name  has  become  legion.  And 
every  high-minded  but  honest  Protestant,  as  well  as  Catholic, 
deplores  the  wretched  divisions  that  have  sprung  up  in  religion, 
exposing  Christianity  by  the  multiplying  forms  in  which  it  pro- 
pounds itself  to  the  derision  of  the  infidel  world,  weakening  the 
cause  and  practically  annihilating  the  evidence.  A  Protestant 
missionary  goes  into  China  ;  he  preaches  the  Protestant  re- 
ligion, but  he  has  scarcely  finished  his  sermon  when  a  Baptist 
missionary  comes  and  tells  the  heathen  that  this  man  is  wrong, 
and  that  he  is  the  true  exponent  of  the  faith ;  scarcely  has  he 
finished  when  a  missionary  of  the  Society  of  Friends  contradicts 
them  both.  If  there  were  no  other  reason  for  that  man's  re- 
jection of  the  whole  thing,  the  very  fact  of  the  contradictory 
evidences  and  the  multiplied  forms  being  put  before  him  is 
sufficient  to  shake  his  faith  in  Christianity  and  even  in  all 
religion.  - 

The  Catholic  says,  I  believe  that  every  word  in  the  Bible  is 
the  revealed  truth  of  God  ;  I  believe  that  the  sources  of  infor- 
mation of  everything  recorded  there  came  from  heaven  ;  I  be- 
lieve that  the  Bible  contains  the  truth  and  nothing  but  the 
truth.  This  is  the  faith  of  the  Catholic  Church.  Let  no  man 
believe  that  we  think  little  of  the  Scriptures.  The  Scriptures 
contain  the  truth  and  nothing  but  the  truth  ;  but  they  do  not 
contain  the  whole  truth.  Nowhere  does  the  Bible  contain  the 
assertion  that  it  contains  the  whole  truth.     Nowhere  does  the 


454  ^'^  Salvation  outside  the  Catholic  Church. 

Bible  make  the  assertion  that  it  may  be  read  with  safety  as  a 
certain  guide  of  the  truth,  without  a  commenting,  authoritative 
voice  to  explain  it ;  but  it  distinctly  tells  us  that  it  does  not 
contain  the  whole  truth.  And  it  distinctly  tells  us  that  it  was 
never  intended  to  be  the  sole  and  solitary  guide  of  religious 
faith.  "  Many  other  things  did  Jesus,"  says  St.  John,  "which 
are  not  written  in  this  Book  ;  for  if  they  were  all  written,  the 
world,  I  imagine,  could  not  contain  the  books  that  would  be 
required  to  record  them."  Here  is  the  Book  telling  me  dis- 
tinctly :  "  Read  me ;  I  am  the  Word  of  God  ;  but  I  warn  you 
beforehand  that  the  Son  of  God  did  many  things  that  are  not 
written  in  my  pages."  That  is  enough  for  me  ;  that  distinctly 
tells  me  that  every  action  of  Him  which  was  of  infinite  impor- 
tance is  not  recorded  in  the  Bible. 

Again,  the  Bible  expressly  tells  me  that  there  are  many 
things  in  the  writings  of  some  of  the  inspired  authors — for  in- 
stance, St.  Paul — "  that  are  difficult  to  be  understood,"  "  and 
that  the  unstable  and  unwary  wrest  to  their  own  destruction." 

The  Bible  expressly  tells  me  that  Jesus  Christ,  when 
He  came  from  heaven  to  save  mankind — that  the  very  first 
thought  of  His  mind  of  infinite  knowledge  and  love  was, 
to  create  and  to  found  a  Church,  a  living  Church,  an  in- 
fallible Church,  a  divinely-guided  Church ;  and  that  every 
man  that  wished  to  know  the  truth,  was  to  hear  the  voice  of 
that  Church,  and  in  hearing  it,  was  to  receive  the  faith  that 
comes  through  it  from  God.  Then  He  founded  it — a  Church  ; 
that  is,  a  teaching  body.  "  Go  !  "  He  says  to  the  apostles, 
"Go  !  teach  all  the  nations."  "  Go,  you  living  men,  and  teach 
them  ;  you  are  the  light  of  the  world  ;  go  out  and  tell  the  peo- 
ple everything  that  you  have  heard  from  Me  ;  and  I  will  send 
My  Spirit  of  divine  truth  upon  you,  which  will  recall  to  your 
mind  everything  that  you  have  heard  from  Me.  I  will  be  with 
you,  I  will  remain  with  you  unto  the  consummation  of  the 
world  to  lead  you  into  all  truth."  "  Behold,  I  am  also  with 
you  until  the  end  of  time  !  " 

A  speaking  Church.  St.  Paul  took  good  care  to  tell  us  that 
it  is  not  by  reading  the  Bible  that  a  man  gets  divine  faith  ;  that 
is  to  say,  the  knowledge  which  is  necessary  for  salvation. 
"Faith,"  he  says,  "comes  by  hearing,  and  hearing  by  the  word 
of  God."     But  how  shall  they  hear  unless  they  have  a  preach- 


No  Salvation  outside  the  Catholic  Church.  455 

er  ?  Therefore,  the  word  of  God,  which  creates  faith,  comes  by 
the  voice  of  the  preacher,  and  that  preacher  must  be  sent  by  a 
divinely  commissioned  Church,  and  that  Church  that  preaches 
must  be  sent  from  God.  For  he  tells  us  in  the  same  place, 
"  For  how  shall  they  preach  unless  they  be  sent  ?  " 

The  word  of  that  preacher  must  be  the  infallible  word  of 
God,  otherwise  it  can  never  create  that  divine  knowledge  which 
is  the  truth  as  it  lies  in  the  mind  of  God.  It  never  can  create 
that  faith  in  the  mind  and  heart  of  man.  A  preacher  must  not 
be  an  individual  merely  coming  and  securing  the  trust  which 
the  people  must  put  in  him  for  the  sanctity  of  his  life,  for  the 
greatness  of  his  learning,  and  the  persuasiveness  of  his  elo- 
quence. No!  no!  He  must  come  with  a  divine  commission, 
and  that  commission  must  have  the  seal  of  God  upon  it.  He 
must  be,  in  a  word,  the  mouthpiece  of  the  speaking,  living,  in- 
fallible Church  of  Jesus  Christ — and  if  we  do  not  hear  her  voice, 
this  teaching  Church,  then  our  divine  Lord  says  to  us  in  sor- 
rowful accents  :  "  He  that  will  not  hear  My  Church,  let  him  be  to 
thee  as  the  heathen  and  the  publican."  For,  as  St.  Paul  tells  us, 
"The  Church  is  the  pillar  and  ground  of  truth  " — the  Church, 
of  whom  the  same  apostle  says:  "Christ  loved  the  Church, 
and  gave  Himself  up  for  her,  that  He  might  present  her  to  Him- 
self all  holy,  not  having  spot,  or  wrinkle,  or  any  such  thing," 
but  a  perfectly  holy  Church.  If  there  be  one  word  in  Scrip- 
ture more  emphatic  than  any  other,  it  is  the  guarantee  that 
Christ  our  Lord  gives,  that  that  Church  will  never  teach  a  lie. 
For  He  says  to  Simon  Peter :  "  Thou  art  Cephas,  and  upon 
this  Cephas  I  will  build  My  Church."  Speaking  in  the  Syriac, 
that  word  Cephas  means  rock ;  "  And  on  this  rock  I  shall  build 
My  Church,"  and  I  promise  you  "  that  the  gates  of  hell  shall 
never  prevail  against  it."  If  the  Church  founded  on  Cephas — 
a  rock — ever  taught,  or  ever  could  teach,  the  people  a  lie,  and 
say,  "  that  is  the  truth  of  God,"  the  gates  of  hell  would  have 
prevailed,  and  Christ's  eternal  wisdom  would  have  been  stulti- 
fied. No !  If  we  have  to  wait  until  the  Catholic  Church, 
tracing  her  priests  in  unbroken  succession  to  the  voice  of  Peter, 
and  from  the  voice  of  Peter  to  the  voice  of  Christ,  if  we  have 
to  wait  until  she  propounds  to  us  a  lie,  we  shall  have  to  wait 
until  the  Son  of  God,  the  Eternal  Truth,  breaks  the  promise  of 
giving  us  the  truth  in  the  oath  that  He  swore. 


456  No  Salvation  outside  the  Catholic  Church. 

My  beloved,  where  do  we  find  unity  except  in  the  Catholic 
Church  ?  If  unity  and  oneness  of  God  be  the  essence  of  truth, 
where  do  we  find  it  except  in  the  Catholic  Church  ?  There 
may  be  unity  in  the  profession  of  a  falsehood  ;  but  there  can 
be  no  disunion  in  the  profession  of  a  truth.  Unity  is  not  of 
necessity  truth ;  but  truth  of  necessity  is  unity.  Wherever, 
therefore,  there  is  division,  there  is  the  seal  and  the  sign  that 
the  truth  cannot  be  there.  Now,  I  ask  you,  where  is  this  unity 
to  be  found  ?  The  Catholic  Church  has  existed  for  eighteen 
hundred  and  seventy  years.  She  has  during  that  time  con- 
verted many  nations.  Up  to  three  hundred  years  ago,  wher- 
ever the  Christian  faith  was  professed,  her  authoritative  voice 
was  acknowledged.  Schisms  broke  out  from  time  to  time, 
but  no  heresy  was  propounded.  But,  during  that  long 
course  of  years,  there  is  not  a  single  doctrine  of  the  Catholic 
Church  that  has  not  been  from  time  to  time  disputed  and  de- 
nied. 

Sometimes  an  emperor,  very  powerful,  able  to  protect  the 
Church,  and  able  to  persecute  her,  would  demand  of  her  some 
portion  of  her  teaching,  as  the  iconoclastic  Emperors  of  Con- 
stantinople demanded  that  the  Pope  and  bishops  of  the  Church 
should  pull  down  the  images  from  their  places  around  the  altars 
of  the  temples  ;  at  other  times  learned  men  rose  up  in  the  pride 
of  their  intellect,  contradicting  the  Church.  Nestorius  denied 
that  the  title  of  the  mother  of  Jesus  Christ  was  the  "  Mother 
of  God."  Arius  denied  that  Christ  our  Lord,  the  Eternal 
Word,  was  consubstantial  with  the  Father.  Pelagius,  another 
learned  man,  denied  the  necessity  of  divine  grace,  teaching  that 
a  man  might  save  his  soul  without  any  grace  or  help  from  God, 
and  so  on.  Every  mystery,  every  doctrine,  from  time  to  time, 
has  been  disputed.  Sometimes  whole  nations  arose  as  one  man 
and  declared  that  they  no  longer  believed  this,  that,  or  the  other 
doctrine  of  the  Catholic  Church.  The  moment  the  Church  of 
God  heard  the  voice,  whether  it  was  of  the  emperor ;  whether 
it  was  of  the  bishops  ;  whether  it  was  of  the  learned  professor  ; 
whether  it  was  of  the  whole  nation,  the  one  and  the  only  answer 
that  the  Church  gave  was:  "You  must  believe  all  that  I  teach 
or  else  you  must  depart  from  me  and  follow  your  own  advice." 
They  turned  round  and  said :  "  But  we  will  persecute  you." 
The  Church  said :  "  I  can  suffer  ;  I  can  bleed ;    I  can  die  ;  but  I 


No  Salvation  outside  the  Catholic  Church.  457 

cannot  change  a  letter,  or  tittle,  or  iota  of  the  unity  of  the 
truth  of  God."  Whole  nations  left  her,  and  she  beheld  their 
departure,  weeping ;  but  what  could  she  do  ?  The  Catholic 
Church  told  the  Arians  of  the  fourth  and  fifth  centuries ;  she 
told  the  Nestorians  of  the  following  centuries  ;  she  told  the 
Donatists,  the  Wickliffites,  and  the  Protestants  of  Germany 
and  of  England,  that  the  moment  that  they  departed  from 
her  they  lost  the  truth,  and  in  losing  the  truth  they  lost  their 
salvation. 

Now,  my  friends,  may  I  again  ask  the  question  :  Since  the 
days  that  these  nations  departed  from  the  Catholic  Church,  has 
not  the  element  of  division,  the  element  of  insincerity,  the  sub- 
stitution of  mere  opinion  for  knowledge,  has  it  not  been  ever 
the  mark  upon  them  of  the  truth,  that  if  unity  of  thought,  unity 
of  exposition,  unity  of  sentiment,  be  of  necessity  the  nature 
of  the  truth,  that  truth  cannot  be  amongst  them  ?  The  truth, 
wherever  it  is,  the  truth  of  God,  must  be  knowledge  and  not 
opinion.  This  is  another  great  error  of  our  day.  Men  say  that 
religious  opinion  is  religion.  Nothing  is  more  common  than  to 
hear  of  the  religious  opinions  of  such  and  such  a  one,  and,  in 
fact,  religious  opinion  has  become  one  of  the  cant  phrases  of 
our  day.  Religious  opinion  means  nothing,  there  is  no  room 
for  it.  Either  God  has  revealed  a  thing  or  He  has  not.  If  He 
has  revealed  it,  it  is  no  longer  a  matter  of  opinion  ;  it  is  a  mat- 
ter of  positive  knowledge.  I  must  know  the  truth,  and  not  be 
looking  for  it :  I  must  have  it,  and  not  be  groping  for  it.  This 
was  the  word  of  the  Saviour:  ''You  shall  know  the  truth,  and 
the  truth  shall  make  you  free."  And  the  very  first  principle 
of  that  spirit  of  truth  that  came  at  once  upon  the  apostles  on 
the  day  of  Pentecost,  was  that  it  was  knowledge,  and  not  mere 
opinion. 

I  have  a  great  respect,  my  dear  friends,  for  every  form  of  re- 
ligious opinion ;  I  know  how  faithfully  and  sincerely  they  are 
professed  by  many  amongst  our  fellow-creatures  ;  I  have  a  great 
respect  for  the  simplicity  and  the  fervor  that  take  up  these  re- 
ligious opinions  ;  but  as  far  as  they  are  an  expression  of  faith,  I 
have  no  respect  at  all  for  them.  Because,  faith  is  knowledge 
coming  from  God — coming  from  the  Authority  that  cannot  err. 
Every  natural  truth  that  we  are  acquainted  with  may  be  ad- 
mixed with  some  error.     The  speculations  of  the  astronomer, 


458  No  Salvatioji  outside  the  Catholic  Church. 

the  very  conclusions  of  the  mathematician,  may  be  subject  to 
error ;  but  the  things  that  God  teaches  are  eternal,  unchange- 
able truth,  and  the  knowledge  they  produce  is  certain  as  is  the 
knowledge  of  the  Almighty  God  Himself. 

Where  is  this  certainty  of  knowledge,  except  in  the  Catholic 
Church  ?  Take  any  one  of  the  doctrines  revealed  in  the  Scrip- 
ture, take  one  of  the  great  truths  that  are  laid  down  there,  look 
outside  of  the  Catholic  Church,  and  you  will  find  them  bandied 
about  from  hand  to  hand,  treated  as  mere  speculations,  as  mere 
conjectures.  You  meet  one  man,  and  he  tells  you  :  "Well,  you 
know,  my  view  of  that  passage  of  Scripture  has  always  been  so 
and  so  ;  "  and  another  time  you  meet  one  of  his  fellow-Protest- 
ants, who  says  to  you  :  "  I  never  could  quite  coincide  with  such 
a  view  of  that  passage ;  my  view  is  so  and  so."  And  so  we 
find  it  all  confusion,  shifting,  and  speculation,  and  correcting  the 
ideas  of  yesterday  by  those  of  to-day. 

Was  it  for  this  that  the  Almighty  God  has  declared  that  we 
should  have  knowledge ;  knowledge  fixed  and  firm  in  the  in- 
tellect as  the  adamantine  rock ;  knowledge  admitting  of  no 
cavil,  no  doubt ;  knowledge  going  straightly  and  simply  to  God, 
taking  the  word  as  it  fell  from  the  lips  of  God  in  the  first  mo- 
ment when  He  inspired  it?  It  is  in  no  spirit  of  bitterness  that 
I  say  it,  my  friends  ;  it  is  certainly  in  no  offensive  spirit  I  tell 
you  of  it.  But,  tell  me,  is  it  not  a  perpetual  change  outside  the 
Catholic  Church?  Just  look  at  it.  For  three  hundred  years 
the  Church  of  England  sang  the  Athanasian  Creed  in  her  service. 
That  creed  contains  three  tremendous  truths,  namely :  the 
truth  of  the  Eternal  and  Divine  Trinity;  the  truth  of  the  Incar- 
nation of  the  Second  Person  of  the  Trinity,  our  divine  Lord 
and  Saviour,  Jesus  Christ ;  and,  finally,  the  truth  that  the  man 
who  does  not  believe  these  two  will  go  down  to  hell  forever ! 
Now,  that  was  sung  as  a  profession  of  faith  for  centuries  in  the 
Protestant  Church  ;  but  at  this  moment,  in  England,  they  are 
moving  heaven  and  earth  to  make  the  bishops  and  clergymen 
of  the  establishment  leave  out  the  Athanasian  Creed  altogether. 
They  don't  want  to  hear  it  any  more,  and  they  will  succeed. 
You  will  see  within  the  next  twelve  months  that  an  act  of  Par- 
liament in  England,  signed  by  the  Queen  in  council,  will  declare 
that  the  Athanasian  Creed  is  no  longer  to  be  read  in  the  Prot- 
estant   churches.       No   longer  are   the   ears   of    our  separated 


No  Salvation  outside  the  Catholic  Church.  459 

brethren  to  be  offended  by  being  told  that  they  must  beh'eve  in 
mysteries  which  no  mind  of  man  can  comprehend.  They  do 
not  want  it;  and  w^hy?  Because  the  Protestant  mind  of  Eng- 
land— in  a  certain  class  which  is  largely  spread  among  the  peo- 
ple, a  class  that  is  represented  in  the  newspapers,  a  class  that 
has  its  learned  essay  writers,  a  class  large  and  influential — refuses 
to  accept  the  fact  that  the  Son  of  God  became  man ;  that  He 
was  incarnate  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  born  of  the  Virgin  Mary, 
and  was  made  man — the  divinity  of  Jesus  Christ.  They  don't 
want  it ;  they  want  to  make  out  that  He  was  no  more  than 
any  ordinary  man.  They  speak  of  Him  as  if  He  was  no  better 
than  an  ordinary  man.  They  began  at  the  Mother,  three  hundred 
years  ago.  They  took  exception  to  the  Catholic  veneration  for 
the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary,  and  said  she  was  no  more  than  an  or- 
dinary woman ;  they  began  with  the  Mother,  and  they  have 
come  to-day  to  touch  her  divine  Son,  and  say  that  He  was  only 
a  man.  They  compare  Him  with  Plato  and  with  Socrates,  the 
philosophers  ;  they  compare  Him  with  our  own  Catholic  saints. 
If  I  recollect  truly  the  words  that  were  reported  to  me,  it  was 
said,  a  very  short  time  ago,  by  some  distinguished  man — a 
preacher  of  religion — that  St.  Francis  of  Assisi  was  a  much  finer 
and  a  much  nobler  character  than  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ !  O 
Lord  !  in  Thy  mercy  forgive  the  man  that  said  it ;  for,  truly,  if 
he  had  known  Thee,  he  never  could  have  so  blasphemed  Thee  ! 
There  is  no  security  or  certainty  of  faith,  there  is  no  exist- 
ence or  certainty  of  knowledge,  except  where  the  Church  comes, 
instinct  with  the  living  voice  of  the  Living  God,  that  dwells 
within  her,  and  says  :  this  is  the  law,  this  is  the  truth ;  heaven 
and  earth  shall  pass  away,  but  this  word  of  God  shall  never  pass 
away.  Moreover,  my  friends,  all  Christianity  is  based  upon 
our  divine  Lord  Jesus  Christ — the  great  corner-stone — "  The 
only  name  under  heaven  given  to  man  whereby  he  may  be 
saved."  And  the  intention  of  God  is  that  no  man  can  enter 
heaven  except  through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  ;  the  only  gate  to 
heaven.  No  man  can  think  that  the  Catholic  Church  teaches 
that  there  is  any  other  gate  to  heaven  except  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ.  In  the  litany  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  we  call  Her 
the  Holy  Mother  of  God  and  the  Gate  of  Heaven ;  it  is  only  a 
figurative  expression  ;  we  mean  by  that  that  heaven  was  opened 
to  man  in  Mary,  on  the  day  that  she  received  into  her  virginal 


460'  No  Salvation  outside  the  Catholic  Church. 

bosom  the  Son  of  God  incarnate  in  her  womb,  and  then  earth 
possessed  its  God.  But,  in  the  sense  of  the  salvation  of  man, 
there  is  only  one  gate  of  heaven,  and  that  is  Jesus  Christ ;  and 
the  Scripture  expressly  tells  us,  that  no  man  can  enter  heaven 
except  through  Him  and  in  Him.  Here  is  the  saying  of  St. 
Paul :  "  No  one  ascends  into  heaven  except  He  who  came  down 
from  heaven,  the  Son  of  Man  who  is  in  heaven."  Are  we  all 
then  excluded  ?  We  are  not,  we  are  surely  not,  the  sons  of  God  ; 
we  surely  never  came  down  from  heaven.  And  does  the  apos- 
tle mean  that  we  can  never  ascend  into  heaven  because  we  never 
came  down  from  heaven  ?  "  No  man,"  he  says,  "  ascends  into 
heaven  except  He  who  came  down  from  heaven."  Are  we  then 
excluded  ?  No !  St.  Augustine  explains  it  beautifully.  No, 
we  are  not  excluded,  but  the  great  fact  is,  that  no  man  can  as- 
cend into  heaven  unless  he  be  taken  by  the  hand  and  be  lifted 
up  by  Him  who  came  down  from  heaven.  So  that  in  ascending 
into  heaven  we  ascend  into  the  arms  of  Jesus  Christ,  our  only 
means  of  ascending  into  that  heaven. 

It  follows,  therefore,  that  just  as  there  is  no  salvation  without 
the  knowledge  of  the  truth,  so  there  is  no  salvation  without  Jesus 
Christ.  Has  he  defined  where  to  find  Him  ?  what  we  are  to 
do  with  Him?  what  we  are  to  let  Him  do  with  us,  in  order 
that  He  may  be  able  to  lift  us  up,  in  order  that  we  may  ascend 
into  heaven  with  Him  who  came  down  from  heaven?  Has  he 
laid  down  clearly  and  distinctly  the  conditions  for  this?  For, 
see,  we  must  find  out  what  these  conditions  are ;  we  must  do 
as  he  tells  us  and  wishes,  otherwise  there  is  no  salvation  for  us. 
No  Christian  man  ever  built  up  any  hope  of  ever  seeing  the 
glory  of  God  except  in  Jesus  Christ.  Thus,  my  friends,  Christ 
our  Lord  has  expressly  said  that  He  would  do  a  certain  thing ; 
that  which  He  was  about  to  do  would  place  Him  in  the  hands 
of  His  creatures,  to  make  a  certain  use  of  Him,  and  thus  fulfill 
His  promise.  He  promised  that  He  would  remain  with  His 
creatures  forever.  Behold,  I  am  with  you  always,  even  unto 
the  end  of  the  world.  He  specified.  He  localized  the  place 
and  manner  of  his  remaining.  When,  at  the  Last  Supper,  He 
took  bread  and  wine  and  by  His  own  mighty  and  omnipotent 
word  He  changed  the  bread  and  wine  into  His  own  most  Sacred 
Body  and  Blood — taking  the  bread.  He  said,  "  This  is  my  Body !  " 
taking  the  wine.  He  breathed  upon  it  and  changed   it  and  said, 


No  Salvation  outside  the  Catholic  Church.  46 1 

"  This  is  my  Blood,  which  shall  be  shed  for  many  unto  the  re- 
mission of  sin," — turning  to  His  apostles  He  said,  That  change 
which  I  have  done,  you  must  do  in  commemoration  of  me.  Then 
He  solemnly  declared,  If  any  man  desires  to  ascend  into  heaven 
he  must  eat  the  flesh  and  drink  the  blood  of  Jesus  Christ,  the 
Son  of  God.  "  He  that  eateth  my  flesh  and  drinketh  my  blood 
abideth  in  me  and  I  in  him,  and  I  will  raise  him  up  at  the  last 
day."  Without  this  there  is  no  salvation.  Christ  our  Lord,  who 
surely  knows  best  what  the  conditions  are  for  salvation,  has  laid 
down  this  injunction,  "  Unless  you  eat  of  the  flesh  of  the  Son  of 
Man  and  drink  of  His  blood  ye  shall  not  have  life  in  you."  The 
Kingdom  of  Heaven  and  Salvation  means  Life  Eternal.  With- 
out this  condition  you  shall  not  have  life  within  you.  There- 
fore, He  said,  "My  flesh  is  meat  indeed,  and  my  blood  is  drink 
indeed."  Words  could  not  be  clearer;  could  not  be  more  em- 
phatic. If,  therefore,  I  wish  to  be  saved,  I  must  find  where 
they  are.  O  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  not  only  must  I  find  Thee,  but 
I  must  make  this  use  of  Thee.  I  must  eat  of  Thy  flesh  and 
drink  of  Thy  blood,  and  only  then  can  I  build  up  my  hope  of 
salvation. 

Now,  where  is  He?  Where  is  He  to  be  found?  Enter  the 
portals  of  a  Protestant  temple,  ask  the  preacher  in  the  pulpit. 
Yes,  walk  up  through  that  church  and  you  will  find  the  preacher 
at  his  desk.  Ask  this  simple  question,  "  I  am  looking  for  the 
Body  and  Blood  of  Jesus  Christ,  that  I  may  eat  and  drink  there- 
of, and  so  be  saved  ;  have  you  it  to  give  me  ?  "  What  answer 
would  you  get  ?  He  would  be  obliged  to  say  to  you,  like  the  an- 
gel on  Easter  morning  to  the  three  Marys,  when  they  came  to 
look  for  their  Lord:  Ah,  seek  not  here  the  living  amongst 
the  dead.  He  is  not  here.  He  goes  out  into  other  churches 
and  temples  that  profess  to  proclaim  the  glory  of  His  name,  and 
he  receives  the  same  answer.  He  crosses  at  length  the  thresh- 
old of  the  Catholic  Church  ;  before  the  altar  beams  the  lamp  of 
living  light  that  tells  us  some  life  is  there.  There,  upon  the  altar, 
is  the  tabernacle,  there  are  lights  burning  around  it,  and  there 
in  front  of  the  altar  is  the  commissioned  priest  saying  to  you, 
He  that  is  here  invites  you,  and  says,  "  Come,  come  to  me,  and 
eat  of  the  bread  and  drink  of  the  wine  that  I  have  mixed  for 
you  !  "  Only  in  the  Catholic  Church  do  we  find  the  express 
conditions  as  expressly  fulfilled.     Now,  I  ask  you,  if  the  knowl- 


4^2  No  Salvation  outside  the  Catholic  Church. 

edge  of  the  truth,  not  opinion,  not  research,  if  the  knowledge 
of  the  truth,  one  undivided,  unchanging  and  certain — if  that  be 
a  necessary  condition  of  salvation,  and  if,  on  the  other  hand,  we 
do  not  find  that  truth  thus  united,  thus  represented,  except  in 
the  Catholic  Church,  is  it  not  perfectly  true,  is  it  not  perfectly 
necessary  to  say,  outside  of  the  Catholic  Church  there  is  no 
salvation? 

If,  on  the  other  hand,  union  with  Jesus  Christ,  and  such  a  union 
• — a  union  which  comes  from  taking  Him  as  your  food — be 
expressly  laid  down  by  Him  as  a  necessity  of  salvation,  then  I  ask 
you  is  it  too  much  to  say  that  outside  of  the  Catholic  Church 
there  is  no  salvation?  But  I  may  be  asked  this  question,  "Is 
every  one  who  is  not  a  Catholic  to  be  damned  ?  "  Ah  !  my  friends, 
I  do  not  come  up  on  this  altar  to  damn  any  man ;  I  follow 
my  divine  Lord  and  Master's  word  :  "  I  am  not  come,"  He  said, 
"  to  judge  the  world,  but  that  the  world  might  be  saved  by 
me."  I  am  not  here  to  condemn  any  man.  The  Church  that 
commands  me  to  speak,  and  honors  me  with  the  supreme  honor 
of  preaching  her  word,  tells  me  at  the  same  time,  "Judge  not, 
that  thou  mayst  not  be  judged,  for  judgment  is  mine,  saith  the 
Lord."  I  have,  from  time  to  time,  in  lectures,  said  hard  things 
about  Henry  VIII.  and  Oliver  Cromwell.  Speaking  of  them,  I 
may  have  been  understood,  perhaps,  to  have  said,  surely  they 
are  lost.  Well,  no  matter  how  strong  my  suspicion  or  my 
fear  may  be,  no  matter  how  I  may  be  in  my  own  mind  influ- 
enced by  a  thousand  historic  prejudices,  influenced  perhaps  by 
the  living  Celtic  blood  that  flows  in  my  veins,  no  matter  how 
hardly  I  may  have  spoken,  here,  upon  this  altar,  here,  within 
these  sacred  walls,  I  assert  that  the  Catholic  Church  condemns 
no  man  ;  the  individual  she  leaves  to  God,  to  His  judgment. 
She  only  proclaims  the  truth  that  her  message  is  to  all  men  in 
every  land  and  every  clime  ;  that  her  message  is  the  message  of 
salvation  to  all  men,  and  that  the  man  who  will  not  listen  to 
her,  who  will  harden  his  heart,  steel  his  mind  against  her,  that 
man  is  out  of  salvation,  he  has  imperilled  his  eternal  salvation. 
How  many  there  are,  my  friends,  who  have  never  heard  the 
name  of  Jesus  Christ ;  how  many  there  are  whom  the  Church's 
message  has  never  reached.  Shall  they  be  condemned  because 
they  believe  not?  God  forbid  that  I  should  assert  it.  They 
are  in  what  is  called  "  invincible  ignorance,"  that  is  to  say,  igno- 


No  Salvation  outside  the  Catholic  Church.  463 

ranee  that  cannot  be  avoided.  If  a  man  never  heard  of  a  law, 
of  the  existence  of  that  law,  never  was  in  a  place  where  he  could 
have  heard  of  the  existence  of  that  law,  that  man,  if  he  violates 
the  law,  surely  he  cannot  be  held  accountable,  as  he  knew 
nothing  about  it,  he  could  not  have  any  knowledge  about  it, 
circumstances  were  such  that  he  really  could  not  know  of  its 
existence,  and,  therefore,  if  he  violated  it,  it  was  because  he  did 
not  know  it.  Surely  God  and  God's  Church  would  not  hold 
such  a  man  accountable. 

What  about  those  who  hear  the  voice  of  the  Catholic  Church 
and  who  harden  their  hearts  and  their  minds,  who  cling  to 
their  own  prejudices  and  jaundiced  views,  who  refuse  the  evi- 
dence and  spurn  the  conviction  put  before  them,  saying,  "  No, 
I  will  never  make  my  submission  to  these  priests."  Because 
the  devil  always  tries  to  get  up  some  slighting  word  or  another, 
and  calls  it,  "  priestcraft,"  "  Romanism,"  "  Papistry,"  and  so  on, 
because  he  knows  there  is  a  good  deal  in  a  name.  So  they 
harden  their  hearts.  Are  they  in  invincible  ignorance?  My 
friends,  again  I  say  I  will  condemn  no  man  ;  but  I  do  say  that 
such  a  man  is  not  in  invincible  ignorance.  I  say  such  a  man  is 
bound  to  pray,  such  a  man  is  bound  to  beseech  the  God  of  light 
to  illumine  him,  he  is  bound  to  prepare  his  heart  and  say,  "  If 
there  are  no  graces  in  that  which  I  believe,  I  wish  to  live  for 
that  Church  of  which  yow  have  spoken,  when  you  tell  me,  '  He 
that  will  not  hear  her  voice  let  him  be  as  a  heathen  and  a  pub- 
lican,' and  if  this  Church  which  preaches  in  her  name  be  the  one 
infallible  authority,  then  open  my  eyes,  that  I  may  behold  it." 

My  friends,  I  know  many  men  doubting,  fearing,  thinking, 
almost  convinced  of  the  real  presence  of  Jesus  Christ  in  the 
blessed  Sacrament,  yet  they  don't  become  Catholics.  Why? 
Because  they  don't  pray.  The  apostles  were  out  upon  the 
angry  waters  of  Genessareth's  lake.  As  they  were  tossed  to 
and  fro  they  beheld  in  the  distance  a  strange  halo  of  misty  light 
coming  towards  them,  and  becoming  brighter  as  it  approached, 
until,  at  length,  they  saw  the  outlines  of  a  man  ;  until,  in  the 
very  heart  of  that  white  light,  they  beheld  the  features  of  their 
Lord,  and  one  said,  "  It  is  the  Master ;  "  and  then  St.  Peter 
said,  "  Lord,  if  it  be  Thou,  command  me  to  come  to  Thee." 
Jesus  said,  "  Come."  It  is  the  duty  of  those  who  are  outside 
the  Catholic  Church,  doubting,  struggling,  inquiring,  searching, 


464  No  Salvation  outside  the  Catholic  Church. 

fearing — it  is  their  duty,  when  in  the  beaming  white  sacramental 
appearance  of  a  morsel  of  bread,  held  up  in  the  trembling  hands 
of  a  priest,  they  see  their  Redeemer,  I  say  it  is  their  duty  to  say, 
"  Lord,  if  it  be  Thou,  command  me  to  come  to  Thee  ;  "  and 
hence,  although  it  may  sound  hard,  bigoted,  and  severe,  yet  the 
Catholic  Church  condemns,  as  I  say,  no  man,  and  leaves  the  in- 
dividual to  God  ;  but  declares  that  he  who  is  without  her  pale, 
and  yet  has  not  the  plea  of  invincible  ignorance,  is  without  the 
way  of  salvation.  And  this  she  says  because  she  must  say  it. 
It  is  not  from  any  wish  at  all  to  condemn  our  fellow-creatures 
that  we  Catholics  say  this.  We  don't  want  to  condemn  ;  we 
had  much  rather  bless  than  curse ;  but,  my  friends,  we  can- 
not say  anything  else.  It  is  the  Word  of  God  ;  it  is  the  message 
of  God.  The  Church  would  cease  to  be  the  messenger  of  God 
unless  she  deliver  the  message,  and  therefore  it  is  that  she  is 
obliged  to  bear  the  stigma  in  the  accusation  of  bigotry  and  of 
heartlessness,  in  this  age  of  ours  of  false  liberality  and  latitudi- 
narianism  in  religion. 

In  this  age  of  ours,  which  seems  to  think,  kindly  and  generous- 
ly, that  every  man  will  be  saved,  it  is  all  the  same  what  you  be- 
lieve or  think,  if  you  have  only  a  general  misty  outline  of  the 
great  truths  of  Christianity — even  holding  these  in  an  uncertain 
grasp — all  men  will  be  saved  ;  there  is  no  devil,  no  hell,  no  jus- 
tice among  the  attributes  of  an  all-perfect  God.  It  is  the  fashion 
of  the  age  thus  to  speak,  and  the  Church  of  God  is  obliged  to 
stand  before  them  and  to  bear  their  reproaches,  and  the  stigma 
set  upon  her  of  persecution,  and  bigotry,  and  narrow-minded- 
ness. She  cannot  help  it,  because  it  is  the  message  her  divine 
Lord  has  put  upon  her  lips  to  preach.  Oh !  that  all  the  nations 
would  hear  her  voice.  Oh  !  that  all  her  own  children  would 
open  their  ears  to  her  sanctifying  sacramental  influence.  Then, 
indeed,  would  the  reign  of  religious  peace  begin  upon  the  earth; 
then,  indeed,  would  many  a  noble  mind  be  set  free  from  the  harass- 
ing and  incessant  inquiry  and  doubt  on  matters  of  religion,  and 
pursue  with  a  wider  scope,  and  a  more  intuitive  perception,  all 
the  researches  of  every  highest  form  of  science  upon  this  earth. 
Then,  indeed,  might  the  nations  once  more  unite,  disband  their 
great  armies,  and  proclaim  that  justice  and  not  might  or  power 
alone,  should  be  for  the  future  the  arbiter  of  their  dissensions. 
Then,  indeed,  would  a  sacramental  God  walk  abroad   upon  the 


No  Salvatio7i  outside  the  Catholic    Church.  465 

earth ;  God's  presence  would  be  hailed  by  the  admiring  millions 
of  the  people.  Then  would  Mary,  His  mother,  be  looked  up  to 
as  the  very  type  of  all  that  is  purest  in  the  maiden  and  most 
tender  in  the  mother.  Then,  indeed,  would  the  glory,  found  in 
comparatively  few  to-day,  be  given  to  all ;  and  all  that  I  have 
been  saying  of  the  heroism,  the  strength  of  intellect,  the  faith, 
of  my  own  race  and  of  my  own  people,  would  be  the  common 
eulogy  of  all  mankind.  Shall  the  day  dawn,  O  Thou  who  didst 
dawn  upon  the  earth,  and  wast  first  beheld  in  the  arms  of  Thy 
Virgin  Mother  ?  Saviour,  Lord,  we  treated  Thee  badly  ;  we 
nailed  Thee  to  the  cross  ;  for  this  we  have  wept  our  tears.  Arise, 
O  Son  of  Heaven  !  Arise  in  all  thy  undivided  light !  Arise  in 
Thy  pure  and  heavenly  glory  I  Let  Thy  rising  go  forth  unto 
the  illumination  of  the  Gentiles  and  of  men,  that  all  men  may 
walk  in  Thy  light,  and  that  all,  O  Saviour  Jesus  Christ,  may 
exult  in  the  brightness  of  Thy  glory ! 
30 


THE  CONSTITUTION  OF  THE  HOLY 
CATHOLIC  CHURCH. 


[Lecture  delivered  in  the  Academy  of  Music,  Brooklyn,  April  24,  1872.] 

Y  FRIENDS:  You  are  here,  this  evening,  as  an  illus- 
tration of  the  old  proverb,  that  a  man  can  get  used  to 
anything.  I  have  heard  of  a  man  who  was  seven  times 
tossed  by  a  mad  ox,  and  he  vowed  he  was  tossed  so 
often  that  he  got  to  like  it.  The  last  time  that  I  was  in  this 
great  hall,  when  I  looked  up  and  saw  the  mass  of  friends  that 
were  around  me,  I  confess  that  I  was  a  little  frightened.  This 
evening  I  have  got  used  to  it ;  I  have  also  got  used  to  your 
kindness;  and  I  hope  I  shall  never  abuse  it. 

We  are  assembled  this  evening,  my  dear  friends,  to  con- 
template the  greatest  work  of  all  the  works  that  the  Al- 
mighty God  ever  created — namely,  "  The  Constitution  of  the 
Holy  Catholic  Church."  In  every  work  of  God  it  has  been 
well  observed  that  the  Creator's  mind  shows  itself  in  the 
wonderful  harmony  that  we  behold  in  all  His  works.  There- 
fore, the  poet  has  justly  said  that  "  Order  is  heaven's  first 
law."  But  if  this  be  true  of  earthly  things,  how  much  more 
does  the  harmony  of  God — in  the  order  which  is  the  very 
expression  of  the  divine  mind — come  forth  and  appear  when 
we  come  to  contemplate  the  glorious  Church  which  Christ 
founded  upon  this  earth.  The  glorious  Church,  I  call  her, 
and  in  using  those  words  I  only  quote  the  inspired  Scriptures 
of  God  ;  for  we  are  told  that  this  Church,  which  Christ,  the 
Lord,  established,  is  a  glorious  Church,  without  spot  or  wrinkle, 
or  defect  of  any  kind,  but  all  perfect,  all  glorious,  and  fit  to  be 
what  He  intended  her  to  be — the  Immaculate  Spouse  of  the 
Son  of  God.     Now,  that  our  divine  Redeemer  intended  to  es- 


The  Constitution  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church.  467 

tablish  such  a  Church  upon  the  earth  is  patent  from  the  re- 
peated words  of  the  Lord  Himself;  for  it  will  appear  that  one 
of  the  strongest  intentions  that  was  in  the  mind  of  the  Re- 
deemer, and  one  of  the  primary  conceptions  of  His  wisdom,  was 
to  establish  upon  this  earth  a  Church,  of  which  He  speaks,  over 
and  over  again,  saying :  "I  will  build  my  Church  so  that  the 
gates  of  hell  shall  never  prevail  against  it."  "  He  that  will  not 
hear  the  voice  of  the  Church,  let  him  be  as  if  he  were  a  heathen 
or  a  publican."  And  so,  throughout  the  Gospels,  we  find  the 
Son  of  God  again  and  again  alluding  to  His  Church,  proclaim- 
ing what  that  Church  was  to  be,  and  setting  upon  her  the  signs 
by  which  all  men  were  to  know  her  as  a  patent  and  self-evident 
fact  among  the  nations  of  the  world,  until  the  end  of  time. 
And  what  idea  does  our  Lord  give  us  of  His  Church  ?  He  tells 
us,  first  of  all — and  tells  us  over  and  over  again — that  His 
Church  is  to  be  a  kingdom,  and  He  calls  it — "  My  Kingdom." 
And  elsewhere,  in  repeated  portions  of  the  Gospel,  He  speaks 
of  it  as  "  The  Kingdom  of  God."  One  time  He  says  :  "  The 
Kingdom  of  God  is  like  unto  a  city  which  was  built  upon  the 
mountain-side,  so  that  all  men  might  behold  it."  And  again  : 
"  The  Kingdom  of  God  is  like  unto  a  candle  set  upon  a  candle- 
stick, so  that  it  might  shed  its  light  throughout  the  whole  house, 
and  that  every  one  entering  the  house  might  behold  it."  And 
again  :  "  The  Kingdom  of  God  is  like  unto  a  net  cast  out  into  the 
sea,  and  sweeping  in  all  that  comes  in  its  way — both  good  and 
bad."  And  so,  throughout,  Christ  always  speaks  of  His  Church 
as  a  kingdom  that  He  was  to  establish  upon  this  earth.  When, 
therefore,  any  meditative,  thoughtful  man  reads  the  Scriptures 
reverently,  dispassionately,  without  a  film  of  prejudice  over  his 
eyes,  he  must  come  to  the  conclusion  that  Christ,  beyond  all, 
founded  a  spiritual  kingdom  upon  this  earth,  and  that  that 
kingdom  was  so  founded  as  to  be  easily  recognized  by  all 
men. 

Now,  if  we  once  let  into  our  minds  the  idea  that  the  Church 
of  Christ  is  a  kingdom,  we  must  at  once  admit  into  the  idea 
of  the  Church  an  organization  which  is  necessary  for  every 
kingdom  upon  this  earth.  And  what  is  the  first  element?  I 
answer  that  the  first  element  of  a  nation  is  to  to  have  a  head  or 
ruler — call  him  what  you  will — elect  him  as  you  will.  Is  it  a 
republic  ?  it  must  have  a  president.     Is  it  a  monarchy  ?  it  must 


468  The  Constitution  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church. 

have  its  king.  Is  it  an  empire?  it  must  have  its  emperor;  and 
so  on.  But  the  moment  you  imagine  a  State  or  kingdom  of 
any  kind  without  a  head,  that  moment  you  destroy  out  of  your 
mind  the  very  idea  of  a  State  united  for  certain  purposes  and 
governed  by  certain  known  and  acknowledged  ideas  called  laws. 
That  head  of  the  nation  must  be  the  supreme  tribunal  of  the 
nation.  From  him,  in  his  executive  office,  all  subordinate  offi- 
cers hold  their  power ;  and  even  though  he  be  elected  by  the 
people,  and  chosen  from  among  the  people,  the  moment  he  is 
set  at  the  head  of  the  State  or  nation,  that  moment  he  is  the 
representative  or  embodiment  of  the  fountain  of  authority. 
Every  one  wielding  power  within  that  nation  must  bow  to  him. 
Every  one  exercising  jurisdiction  within  the  nation  must  derive 
it  from  him.  He,  I  say  again,  may  derive  it,  even,  from  the 
choice  of  the  people  ;  but,  when  he  is  thus  elevated,  he  forms 
one  unit,  to  which  everything  in  the  State  is  bound  to  look  up. 
This  is  the  very  first  idea  and  notion  which  the  word  State  or 
kingdom  involves. 

It  follows,  therefore,  that,  if  the  Church  founded  by  Christ  be 
a  kingdom,  the  Church  must  have  a  head ;  and,  if  you  can  im- 
agine a  Church  without  a  head,  yet  retaining  its  consistency,  its 
strength,  its  unity,  and  its  usefulness,  for  any  purpose  for  which 
it  was  created,  you  can  imagine  a  thing  that  it  is  impossible  to 
my  mind,  or  to  the  mind  of  any  reasonable  man,  to  conceive. 
Luther  imagined  it,  when  he  broke  up  the  nations  of  the  earth 
with  his  Protestant  heresy ;  when  he  rent  asunder  the  sacred 
garment  of  unity  that  girded  the  fair  form  of  the  holy  Church, 
the  Spouse  of  God.  When  he  broke  up  the  Church,  he  was 
obliged  to  retain  the  principle  of  headship.  The  Church  of 
England  had  her  head  ;  the  Church  of  Denmark  had  her  head  ; 
that  is  to  say,  her  fountain  of  jurisdiction,  her  ruling  authority, 
her  unity,  the  existence  of  which  in  all  these  States  we  see,  with 
at  least  the  appearance  of  religion — kept  up  the  phantasm  of 
a  real  Church.  It  is  true,  my  friends,  when  you  come  to  ana- 
lyze these  different  heads  that  spring  up  from  the  different  Prot- 
estant Churches  in  the  various  countries  of  Europe,  we  shall 
find  some  amongst  them,  that  I  believe  here,  in  America,  would 
be  called  "  sore-heads."  Harry  the  Eighth  was  a  remarkable 
•*  sore-head." 

We  next  come  to  the  question — Who  is  the  head  of  the 


The  Constitution  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church.         469 

Church  of  Christ?  Who  is  the  ruler?  Before  I  answer  this  ques- 
tion, my  friends,  I  will  ask  you  to  rise  in  imagination  to  the  gran- 
deur of  the  idea  that  fills  the  mind  contemplating  the  unfathoma- 
ble wisdom  of  God,  when  He  was  laying  the  foundations  and  sink- 
ing them  deeply  into  the  earth — the  foundations  of  His  Church. 
What  purpose  had  Christ,  the  Son  of  God,  in  view,  that  He 
should  establish  the  Church  at  all?  He  answers,  and  tells  us 
really,  that  He  had  two  distinct  purposes  in  view,  and  that  it 
was  the  destiny  of  the  Church,  which  He  was  about  to  found, 
to  make  these  purposes  known  and  carry  them  out,  and  with 
the  extension  of  them  to  spread  herself  and  be  faithful  unto  the 
consummation  of  the  world.  What  were  these  purposes  ?  The 
first  of  these  was  to  enlighten  the  world  and  dispel  darkness  by 
the  light  of  her  teachings.  Wherefore  He  said  to  His  apostles: 
"  You  are  the  light  of  the  world.  Let  your  light  so  shine  before 
men  that  all  men  may  see  you,  and  seeing  you,  may  give  glory 
to  your  Father,  who  is  in  heaven."  "  You  are  the  light  of  the 
world,"  He  says.  "  A  man  does  not  light  a  candle  and  put  it 
under  a  bushel,  but  sets  it  upon  a  candlestick,  that  it  may  illumi- 
nate the  whole  house,  and  that  all  men  entering  may  behold  it. 
So  I  say  unto  you,  you  are  the  light  of  the  world  and  the  illumi- 
nation of  all  ages." 

This  was  the  first  purpose  for  which  Christ  founded  His 
Church.  The  world  was  in  darkness.  Every  light  had  beamed 
upon  it,  but  in  vain.  The  light  of  pagan  philosophy — even  the 
highest  human  knowledge — had  beamed  forth  from  Plato,  and 
from  the  philosophers,  but  it  was  unable  to  penetrate  the  thick 
veil  that  overshadowed  the  intellect  and  the  genius  of  man,  and 
to  illumine  that  intelligence  with  one  ray  of  celestial  or  divine 
truth.  The  light  of  genius  had  beamed  upon  it.  The  noblest 
works  of  art  this  earth  ever  beheld  were  raised  before  the  ad- 
miring eyes  of  the  pagans  of  the  world.  But  neither  the  pencil 
of  Praxiteles,  nor  the  chisel  of  Phidias,  bringing  forth  the  high- 
est forms  of  artistic  beauty,  were  able  to  elevate  the  mind  of 
the  pagan  to  one  pure  thought  of  the  God  who  made  him. 
Every  human  light  had  tried  in  vain  to  dispel  this  thick  cloud 
of  darkness.  The  light  of  God  alone  could  do  it  ;  and  that  light 
came  with  Jesus  Christ  from  heaven.  Wherefore  He  said  :  "  I 
am  the  Light  of  the  world ;  "  and  "  in  Him  "  says  the  Evan- 
gelist, "  was  Life,  and  the  Life  was  the  light  of  men." 


470         The  Constitution  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church. 

The  next  mission  of  the  Church  was  not  only  to  illumine  the 
darkness,  but  to  heal  the  corruption  of  the  world,  which  had 
grown  literally  rotten  in  the  festering  of  its  own  spiritual  ulcers, 
until  every  form  that  human  crime  can  take  was  not  only  es- 
tablished amongst  men,  but  acknowledged  amongst  them — 
crowned  amongst  them  ;  not  only  acknowledged  and  avowed, 
but  actually  lifted  up  on  their  altars  and  deified  in  the  midst  of 
them  ;  so  that  men  were  taught  to  adore  as  a  god  the  shameful 
impersonation  of  their  own  licentiousness,  debauchery,  and 
sin.  Terrible  was  the  moral  condition  of  the  world,  when  the 
hand  of  an  angry  God  was  forced  to  draw  back  the  flood-gates 
of  heaven  and  sweep  away  the  corruption  which  prevailed 
through  all  flesh,  until  the  spiritual  God  beheld  no  vestige  of 
His  resemblance  left  in  man  !  Terrible  was  the  corruption  when 
the  same  hand  was  obliged  once  more  to  be  put  forth  ;  and 
down  from  the  heaven  of  heavens  came  a  rain  of  living  fire,  and 
burned  up  a  whole  nation  because  they  were  corrupt !  Terrible 
was  the  corruption  when  the  Almighty  God  called  upon  every 
pure-minded  man  to  draw  the  sword  in  the  name  of  the  God 
of  Israel,  and  smite  his  neighbor  and  his  friend,  until  a  whole 
nation  was  swept  away  from  out  the  twelve  tribes  of  Israel! 
Christ  was  sent  out  as  our  head  ;  and  He  came  and  found  the 
world  one  festering  and  corrupt  ulcerous  sore;  and  He  laid 
upon  it  the  saving  salve  of  His  mercy,  and  declared  that  He 
was  the  purifier  of  society  ;  and  to  His  disciples  He  said  :  "  You 
are  not  only  the  life  of  the  world,  to  dispel  its  darkness,  but  you 
are  the  salt  of  the  earth,  to  heal,  and  sweeten,  and  to  preserve  a 
corrupt  and  fallen  nature." 

This  is  the  second  great  mission  of  the  Church  of  God — to 
heal  with  her  sacramental  touch,  to  purify  with  her  holy  grace, 
to  wipe  away  the  corruption,  and  to  prevent  its  return  by  lay- 
ing the  healing  influence  of  divine  grace  there.  This  is  the 
mission  of  the  Church  of  God — which  was  Christ's — to  be  unto 
the  end  of  time  the  light  of  the  world  and  the  salt  of  the 
earth. 

Now,  from  this  twofold  office  of  the  Church  of  God,  I  argue 
that  God  Himself — the  God  who  founded  her,  the  God  who 
established  her  in  so  much  glory  and  for  so  high  and  holy  a 
purpose,  the  God  who  made  her  and  created  her.  His  fairest 
and  most  beautiful  work — that   He  must  remain  with  her,  and 


The  Const  it  7it  ion  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church.         471 

be  her  true  head  unto  the  end  of  time.  And  why?  Who  is 
the  Hght  of  the  world?  "I  am,"  says  Christ.  Who  is  the 
purifier  of  the  world  ?  "I  am,"  responds  the  same  Christ.  If, 
then,  thou,  Christ,  be  the  purifier  of  the  earth  and  the  light  of 
the  world,  tell  us,  O  Master,  can  the  light  of  grace  or  purity 
come  from  any  other  source  than  Thee?  He  answers:  "No; 
the  man  who  seeks  it  in  any  but  in  Me,  finds  for  his  light,  dark- 
ness, and  for  his  healing,  corruption  and  death.  The  man  who 
plants  upon  any  other  soil  than  mine,  plants  indeed ;  but  the 
Heavenly  Father's  hand  shall  pluck  out  what  he  plants."  Christ, 
therefore,  is  the  true  Head  of  His  Church,  the  abiding  Head  of 
His  Church,  the  unfailing,  ever-watchful  Head  of  His  Church, 
and  is  as  much  to-day  the  Head  of  the  Church  as  He  was 
eighteen  hundred  years  ago.  Christ,  to-day,  is  the  real  Head, 
the  abiding  Head.  He  arose  from  the  dead  after  He  had  lain 
three  days  in  darkness.  He  had  said  to  His  apostles  :  I  am 
about  to  leave  you  ;  but  it  will  only  be  for  a  little  ;  a  little 
while  and  you  shall  not  see  Me  any  more ;  but  after  a  very  little 
while  you  shall  see  Me  again.  But  I  'will  not  leave  you  orphans  ; 
I  will  come  to  you  again,  and  I  will  remain  with  you  all  days 
unto  the  consummation  of  the  world. 

Oh !  my  friends,  what  a  consoling  thought,  this  unfailing 
promise  of  the  words  of  the  Redeemer  !  Oh  !  what  a  consola- 
tion has  this  world  in  Him,  who  said :  "  Heaven  and  earth 
shall  pass  away,  but  my  words  shall  never  pass  away  ;  "  "I  am 
with  you  all  days,  unto  the  consummation  of  the  world."  And 
how  is  He  with  us?  Is  He  with  us  visibly?  No.  Do  we 
behold  Him  with  our  eyes?  No.  Do  we  hear  His  own  imme- 
diate voice?  No.  Have  any  of  you  ever  seen  or  heard  Him, 
immediately  and  directly,  as  John  the  Evangelist  saw  Him 
when  He  was  upon  the  cross ;  as  Mary  heard  Him  when  He 
said  to  her:  "  I  am  the  resurrection  and  the  life  "?  No.  Yet 
He  founded  a  visible  kingdom — a  kingdom  which  was  to  be  set 
upon  the  earth,  as  a  candle  set  upon  a  candlestick.  Therefore, 
if  He  is  at  the  head  of  that  kingdom — if  He  is  to  preside  over 
it — if  He  is  to  rule  and  govern  it,  a  visible  kingdom.  He  must 
show  Himself  visibly.     This  He  does  not. 

In  His  second  and  abiding  coming  He  hides  Himself  within 
the  golden  gates  of  the  Tabernacle  ;  and  there  he  abides  and 
remains ;  but  when  it  was  a  question  of  governing  His  Church, 


472  The  Constitution  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church. 

Christ  our  Lord  Himself  appointed  a  visible  head.  And  who 
was  this?  He  called  twelve  men  around  Him  ;  He  gave  them 
power  and  jurisdiction  ;  He  gave  them  the  glorious  mission  of 
the  apostles  ;  He  gave  them  a  communication  of  His  own 
Spirit;  He  gave  them  inspiration;  He  breathed  His  Holy 
Spirit,  the  Third  Person  of  the  Blessed  Trinity,  upon  them  ; 
and  He  took  one  of  the  twelve,  and  He  spoke  to  one  man  three 
most  important  words.  They  were  meant  for  that  one  man 
alone  ;  and  the  proof  is  that  on  each  occasion  when  Christ  spoke 
to  them,  He  called  the  twelve  men  around  Him,  and  He  spoke 
to  that  one  man  alone  in  the  presence  of  the  other  eleven,  and 
that  there  might  be  eleven  witnesses  to  the  privileges  and  the 
power  of  the  one.  Who  was  that  one  man  ?  St.  Peter.  St. 
Peter  was  chosen  among  the  apostles  ;  St.  Peter,  not  up  to 
that  time  the  one  that  was  most  loved,  for  John  was  "  the  dis- 
ciple whom  Jesus  loved  ;  "  St.  Peter,  who,  more  than  any  of  the 
others,  was  reproved  by  His  Lord,  in  the  severest  terms ;  St. 
Peter,  who,  more  than  any  of  the  others,  who  were  faithful, 
showed  his  weakness  until  the  confirming  power  of  the  Holy 
Ghost  came  upon  him  ;  Peter  was  the  one  chosen  ;  and  here  are 
the  three  words  which  Christ  spoke.  First  of  all.  He  said  : 
"  Thou  art  the  rock  upon  whom  I  shall  build  my  Church."  Christ 
heard  the  people  speaking  of  Him,  and  He  said  :  **  Whom  do  they 
say  I  am  ?  "  and  the  apostles  answered  :  "  Lord,  some  of  them 
say  you  are  Jeremiah,  and  some  of  them  say  you  are  John  the 
Baptist,  and  some  say  you  are  a  prophet."  Then  Christ  asked 
them,  solemnly:  "Whom  do  you  say  I  am?"  Down  went 
Peter  on  his  knees,  and  cried  out :  "  Thou  art  Christ,  the  Son 
of  the  living  God."  Then  Christ  our  Lord  said  to  him:  "  Bless- 
ed art  thou,  Simon,  son  of  John,  because  flesh  and  blood  hath 
not  revealed  it  to  thee,  but  My  Father,  who  is  in  heaven.  And 
I  say  to  thee  that  thou  art  Cephas,  and  upon  this  rock  I  will 
build  my  Church."  The  man  who  denies  to  Peter  the  glorious 
and  wonderful  privilege  of  being  the  visible  foundation  under- 
lying the  Church  of  God,  and  upholding  it,  is  untrue  to  Christ, 
the  Head  of  the  Church. 

The  second  word  the  Son  of  God  spoke  to  Peter,  was  this  : 
"To  thee,  O  Peter,"  he  says,  in  the  presence  of  the  others,  "To 
thee,  O  Peter,  will  I  give  the  keys  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven. 
Whatsoever    thou   shalt   bind   upon  earth  shall  be  bound  in 


The  Constitution  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church.        473 

heaven."  He  gave  His  promise  to  them  all,  but  to  Peter, 
singly,  he  said  :  "  To  thee  do  I  give  the  keys  of  the  kingdom  of 
heaven ;  "  that  is,  the  supreme  power  over  the  Church.  On 
another  occasion  Christ  our  Lord  spoke  to  Peter,  and  the  others 
were  present,  and  He  said  to  him :  "  Simon,  Simon,  the  devil 
has  asked  for  thee,  that  he  might  sift  thee  as  wheat.  But  I  have 
prayed  for  thee,  that  thy  faith  fail  not  ;  and  thou,  being  confirm- 
ed, confirm  thy  brethren."  Now,  any  man  who  denies  to  Peter, 
in  the  Church,  that  eternal  kingdom  that  is  never  to  come  to  an 
end,  and  to  Peter  and  his  successors,  the  power  over  his 
brethren,  to  confirm  them  in  the  faith  which  shall  never  fail — 
in  the  faith  which  was  the  subject  of  the  prayer  of  the  Son  of 
God  to  His  Father — any  man  who  denies  this  supremacy  of 
Peter,  gives  the  lie  to  Jesus  Christ. 

On  another  solemn  occasion  the  Son  of  God  spoke  to  Peter, 
when  He  was  preparing  to  bid  His  apostles  and  disciples  a  last 
farewell.  They  had  seen  Him  crucified ;  they  had  seen  Him  lie 
disfigured,  mangled,  in  the  silent  tomb.  From  that  tomb,  with  a 
power  which  was  all  His  own,  He  rose,  like  the  lightning  of  God, 
to  the  heavens,  sending  from  before  Him,  howling  and  shriek- 
ing, all  the  demons  of  hell,  conquered  and  subdued.  Now,  His 
apostles  were  gathered  together.  Suddenly  a  flash  lights  up  the 
heavens,  and  He  appears  in  their  midst.  Then  He  goes  straight 
to  Peter,  and  He  says:  "Simon  Peter,  do  you  love  Me  more 
than  all  these  ?  "  Peter  did  not  know  what  He  meant,  and  he 
said:  "Yea,  Lord,  Thou  knowest  that  I  love  You."  A  second 
time,  after  a  pause,  the  Son  of  God  said  :  "  Simon,  son  of  John, 
lovest  thou  me  more  than  these  .''  "  Peter  said  :  "  Lord,  Thou 
knowest  I  love  Thee."  Another  awful  pause,  and  a  third  time 
He  raised  His  voice,  and,  letting  the  majesty  of  God  flash  out 
from  Him,  He  says:  "  Simon,  son  of  John,  lovest  thou  Me  more 
than  these  ? "  And  then  Peter,  bursting  into  tears,  said : 
"  Lord,  Thou  knowest  all  things  ;  Thou  knowest  I  love  Thee." 
Then  said  the  Redeemer  :  "  Feed  My  lambs  ;  Feed  My  sheep," 
Elsewhere,  the  same  Redeemer  had  said  :  "  There  shall  be  one 
fold  and  one  shepherd  ;  "  and  He  laid  His  hand  on  the  head  of 
Peter,  and  said  :  "  Thou  art  Peter,  the  son  of  John,  be  thou  the 
shepherd  of  the  one  fold ;  feed  My  lambs ;  feed  My  sheep." 
He  who  denies,  therefore,  to  Peter,  and  to  Peter's  successor, 
whoever  he  is,  the  one  headship,  the  one  office  of  shepherd  in 


474         l'^^^  Constitution  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church. 

the  one  fold  of  God,  gives  the  lie  to  Jesus  Christ,  the  God  of 
truth. 

The  day  of  the  Ascension  came.  For  forty  days  did  Christ 
remain  discoursing  with  His  apostles,  instructing  them  concern- 
ing the  kingdom  of  God.  And  when  the  forty  days  were  over, 
he  led  them  forth  from  Jerusalem,  into  the  silent,  beautiful 
Mountain  of  Olives,  and  there,  as  they  were  gathered  around 
Him,  and  He  was  speaking  to  them  and  telling  them  of  things 
concerning  the  kingdom  of  God — that  is,  the  Church — slowly, 
wonderfully,  majestically,  they  beheld  His  figure  rise  from  the 
earth  ;  and  as  it  arose  above  their  heads  it  caught  a  new  glory 
and  splendor  that  was  shed  down  upon  it  from  the  broken  and 
the  rent  heavens  above.  They  followed  Him  with  their  eyes. 
They  saw  Him  pass  from  ring  to  ring  of  light.  Their  ears 
caught  the  music  of  the  nine  choirs  of  heaven,  of  millions  of 
angels,  who,  from  the  clouds,  saluted  the  coming  Lord.  They 
strained  their  eyes  and  their  hands  after  Him.  They  lifted  up 
their  voices,  saying,  as  they  did  of  old  to  Elias :  "Oh!  Thou 
chariot  of  Israel,  and  its  charioteer !  wilt  Thou  leave  us  now 
and  abandon  us  forever  ? "  And  from  the  clouds  that  were 
surrounding  Him  He  waved  to  them  His  last  blessing;  and 
their  streaming  eyes  caught  the  last  lustre  and  brightness  of 
His  figure,  as  it  disappeared  in  the  empyrean  of  heaven,  and 
was  caught  up  to  the  Throne  of  God.  Then  an  angel  flashed 
into  their  presence  and  said  :  "Ye  men  of  Galilee,  why  stand 
ye  here  looking  up  to  heaven?  This  Jesus,  who  is  taken  up 
into  heaven,  shall  so  come  as  you  have  seen  Him  going  into 
heaven."  And  the  eleven  disciples  bent  their  knees  to  Peter, 
the  living  representative  of  the  supremacy,  the  truth,  and  the 
purity  of  Jesus  Christ. 

Henceforth  the  life  of  Peter,  and  of  Peter's  successors,  became 
the  great  leading  light  around  which,  and  toward  which,  the 
whole  history  of  the  world  revolved.  It  became  the  central  point 
to  which  everything  upon  this  earth  must  tend  ;  because,in  the  de- 
signs of  God,  the  things  of  time  are  but  preparation  for  the  things 
of  eternity ;  and  Peter,  in  being  the  representative  and  viceroy 
of  the  son  of  God  upon  earth — in  the  external  headship  and 
government  of  the  Church — was  the  only  man  who  came  near- 
est to  God,  who  had  most  of  God  in  him,  and  most  of  God  in 
his  power — in   the   distribution   of  His  grace,  in   the  attributes 


/ 


The  Constitution  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church.         475 

that  belong  to  the  Saviour — and,  consequently,  became  the  first, 
and  highest,  and  greatest  of  men,  and  the  only  man  that  was 
necessary  in  this  world. 

For  many  long  and  weary  years  Peter  labored  in  his  Master's 
cause,  watering  the  way  of  his  life  with  the  tears  of  an  abiding 
sorrow,  because,  in  an  hour  of  weakness,  he  had  denied  Jesus 
Christ ;  until,  at  length,  many  years  after  the  Saviour's  ascen- 
sion into  heaven,  an  old  man  was  brought  forth  from  a  deep 
dungeon  in  Rome.  There  were  chains  upon  his  aged  limbs, 
and  he  was  bowed  down,  with  care  and  austerity,  to  the  very 
earth.  The  few  white  hairs  upon  his  head  fell  upon  his  aged 
and  drooping  shoulders.  Meekly  his  lips  moved  as  in  prayer, 
while  he  toiled  up  the  steep,  rugged  side  of  one  of  the  seven 
hills  of  Rome.  And  when  he  had  gained  the  summit,  lo !  as 
in  Jerusalem,  many  years  before,  there  was  a  cross,  and  there 
were  three  nails.  They  nailed  the  aged  man  to  that  cross, 
straining  his  time-worn  limbs,  until  they  drove  the  nails  into 
his  hands  and  feet.  And  then,  when  they  were  about  to  lift 
him,  a  faint  prayer  came  from  his  lips,  and  the  crucified  man 
said:  "  There  was  One  in  Jerusalem  whose  royal  head  was  lifted 
towards  heaven,  upon  a  cross.  And  He  was  my  Lord  and  my 
God,  Jesus  Christ.  I  am  not  worthy,"  he  said,  "  to  be  made 
like  Him  even  in  suffering;  and,  therefore,  I  pray  you  that  you 
crucify  me  with  my  head  towards  the  earth,  from  which  I 
came."  And  so,  thus  elevated,  he  died  ;  and  the  first  Pope 
passed  away. 

For  three  hundred  years  Pope  succeeded  Pope.  Peter  had 
no  sooner  left  the  world  than  Linus  took  his  sceptre  and  gov- 
erned the  Church  of  God.  Though  down  in  the  catacombs  of 
Rome,  he  governed  the  Church  of  God  ;  every  bishop  in  the 
Church,  every  power  in  the  Church,  recognized  him  and  obeyed 
him  as  the  representative  of  God — the  living  head,  the  earthly 
viceroy,  of  the  invisible  but  real  Head — Jesus  Christ.  For 
three  hundred  years  Pope  after  Pope  died,  and  sealed  his  faith 
in  the  Church  of  God  with  a  martyr's  blood.  And  then,  after 
three  hundred  years  of  dire  persecution,  the  Church  of  God  was 
free,  and  she  walked  the  earth  in  all  the  majesty  and  purity  of 
her  beauty. 

In  the  fifth  century,  the  Roman  Empire  yet  preserved  the 
outward  form  of  its  majesty  and  power.     All  the  nations  of  the 


47^         The  Constitution  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church. 

earth  bowed  to  Rome.  All  the  conquered  peoples  looked  to 
Rome  as  their  master,  and  as  the  centre  of  the  world ;  when, 
suddenly,  from  the  forests  and  snows  of  the  North,  poured 
down  the  Huns,  the  Goths,  and  Visigoths,  in  countless  thou- 
sands and  hundreds  of  thousands.  The  barbarian  hordes  sallied 
from  their  fastnesses,  and,  led  by  their  savage  kings,  broke  in 
pieces  the  Roman  Empire,  and  shattered  the  whole  fabric  of 
pagan  civilization  to  atoms.  They  rode  rough-shod  over  the 
Roman  citizens  and  their  rulers,  burned  their  palaces,  and  de- 
stroyed their  cities,  leaving  them  a  pile  of  smouldering  ruins. 
Every  vestige  of  ancient  pagan  civilization  and  power,  glory, 
and  art,  and  science,  went  down  and  disappeared  under  the 
tramp  of  the  horses  of  Attila.  One  power  alone  stood  before 
these  ruthless  destroyers  ;  one  power  alone  opened  its  arms  to 
receive  them  ;  one  power  arrested  them  in  their  career  of  blood 
and  victory  ; — and  that  power  was  the  Catholic  Church.  "  In 
that  day,"  says  a  Protestant  historian,  "  the  Catholic  Church 
saved  the  world,  and  out  of  these  rude  elements  formed  the 
foundation  of  the  civilization,  the  liberty,  and  the  joy  which  is 
our  portion  in  this  nineteenth  century." 

In  the  meantime,  Rome  was  destroyed.  The  fairest  prov- 
inces of  Gaul,  Spain,  Italy,  and  Germany  were  overrun  by  the 
barbarians,  and  the  people  oppressed.  Fathers  of  families  were 
cut  off,  hearth-fires  extinguished,  and  the  blood  of  the  young 
ravished  maiden  and  of  the  weeping  mother  was  wantonly  shed. 
The  people,  in  their  agony,  cried  out  to  the  only  man  whom 
the  barbarians  respected,  whom  the  whole  world  recognized  as 
something  tinged  with  divinity — the  Pope  of  Rome.  The  cry 
of  an  anguished  people  went  forth  from  end  to  end  of  Italy  ;  and 
in  that  ninth  century  the  cry  was,  "Save  us  from  ruin  !  Cover 
us  with  the  mantle  of  your  protection  !  Be  thou  our  monarch 
and  king!  and  then,  and  then  only,  can  we  expect  to  be  saved." 
Then  did  the  Pope  of  Rome  clothe  himself  with  a  new  power, 
independent  of  that  which  he  had  received  already,  and  which 
was  recognized  from  the  beginning — namely,  that  temporal 
power  and  sovereignty,  that  crown  of  a  monarch,  that  place  in 
the  council-chambers  of  kings,  that  voice  in  the  guidance  of  na- 
tions, and  in  the  influencing  of  the  destinies  of  the  material 
world,  which,  for  century  after  century,  he  exercised,  but  which 
we,  in  our  day,  have  seen  him  deprived  of  by  the  hands  of  those 


The  Constitution  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church.        477 

who  have  plucked  the  kingly  crown  from  his  aged  and  venera- 
ble brow.  How  did  he  exercise  that  power  ?  How  did  he  wear 
that  crown?  What  position  does  he  hold,  as  his  figure  rises  up 
before  the  historical  vision  of  the  student,  looking  back  into  the 
past,  and  beholding  him  as  he  passes  amongst  the  long  file  of 
kings  and  warriors  of  the  earth  ?  Oh,  my  friends,  no  sword 
dripping  with  blood  is  seen  in  the  hands  of  the  Pope  King;  but 
only  the  sceptre  of  justice  and  of  law.  No  cries  of  a  suffering 
and  afflicted  people  resound  about  him,  but  the  blessings  of  peace 
and  of  a  delighted  and  consoled  world  surround  him.  No  blood 
follows,  floating  in  the  path  of  his  progress.  That  path  is  strewn 
with  the  tears  of  those  who  wept  with  joy  at  his  approach,  and 
with  the  flowers  of  peace  and  of  contentment.  He  used  his 
power — and  history  bears  me  out  when  I  say  it — the  power 
which  was  providentially  put  into  his  hands,  by  which  he  was 
made  not  only  a  king  among  kings,  but  the  first  recognized 
monarch  in  Christendom ;  the  king  highest  among  kings :  the 
man  whose  voice  governed  the  kings  of  the  earth,  convened 
their  councils,  directed  their  course,  reproved  them  in  their 
errors,  and  restrained  them  from  shedding  the  blood  of  their 
people,  and  from  the  commission  of  every  other  injustice  ; — all 
these  powers  he  used  for  the  good  of  God's  people.  He  used 
that  power  for  a  thousand  years  for  purposes  of  clemency,  of 
law,  of  justice,  and  of  freedom.  When  Spain  and  Portugal,  in 
the  zenith  of  their  power,  each  commanding  mighty  armies, 
were  about  to  draw  the  sword  and  devastate  the  fair  plains  of 
Castile  and  Andalusia,  the  Pope  came  in  and  said  :  "  Mighty 
kings  though  you  be,  I  will  not  permit  you  to  shed  the  blood 
of  your  people  in  an  unnecessary  war."  When  Philip  Augustus 
of  France,  at  the  height  of  his  power — when  he  was  the  strong- 
est king  in  Christendom — wished  to  repudiate  his  lawful  wife, 
and  to  take  another  one  in  her  stead,  the  injured  woman  ap- 
pealed to  Rome ;  and  from  Rome  came  the  voice  of  Rome's 
king,  saying  to  him  :  "  O  monarch,  great  and  mighty  as  thou 
art,  if  thou  doest  this  injustice  to  thy  married  wife,  and  scanda- 
lize the  world  by  thine  impurity,  I  will  send  the  curse  of  God 
and  of  His  Church  upon  you,  and  cut  you  off  like  a  rotten 
branch  from  among  the  community  of  kings."  When  Hen- 
ry VIII.  of  England  wished  to  put  away  from  him  the  pure 
and  high-minded  and  lawful  mother  of  his  children,  because  his 


47^         The  Constitution  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church. 

licentious  eye  had  fallen  upon  a  younger  and  fairer  form  than  hers, 
the  Pope  of  Rome  said  to  him  :  "  If  you  commit  this  iniquity ; 
if  you  repudiate  your  lawful  wife  ;  if  you  set  up  the  principle 
that  because  you  are  a  king  you  can  violate  the  law ;  if  no 
power  in  your  own  country  is  able  to  bring  you  to  account  for  it, 
my  hand  will  come  down  upon  you  ;  and  I  will  cut  you  off  from 
the  communion  of  the  faithful,  and  fling  you,  with  the  curse  of 
God  upon  you,  out  upon  the  world."  And  I  say  that  in  such 
facts  as  these — and  I  might  multiply  them  by  one  hundred — 
the  Pope  of  Rome  used  the  temporal  sovereignty  and  his  kingly 
power  among  the  nations  in  establishing  the  sacred  cause  of 
human  liberty.  I  speak  of  human  liberty — I  speak  of  liberty  ; 
I  thank  my  God  that  I  am  breathing  the  air  in  which  a  free 
man  may  speak  the  language  of  freedom.  I  have  a  right  to 
speak  of  freedom  ;  for  I  am  the  child  of  a  race  that  for  eight 
hundred  years  have  been  martyred  in  the  sacred  cause  of  free- 
dom. 

Never  did  a  people  love  it,  since  the  world  was  created,  as 
the  children  of  Ireland,  who  enjoy  it  less  than  any  other  na- 
tion. I  can  speak  this  night,  but  rather  with  the  faltering  voice 
of  an  infant,  than  with  the  full  swelling  tones  of  a  man.  For  I 
have  loved  thee,  O  Mother  Liberty.  Thy  fair  face  was  veiled 
from  mine  eyes  from  the  days  of  my  childhood.  I  longed  to 
see  the  glistening  of  thy  pure  eyes,  O  Liberty  ;  I  never  saw  it 
until  I  set  my  foot  upon  the  soil  of  glorious  young  Columbia. 
And  there,  rising  out  of  this  great  Western  Ocean,  like  Aphro- 
dite of  old — like  Venus  from  the  foam  of  the  rolling  billows — I 
beheld  the  goddess  in  all  her  beauty  ;  and  as  a  priest  as  well  as 
an  Irishman,  I  bowed  down  to  thee. 

But  what  is  liberty  ?  Does  it  consist  in  every  man  having  a 
right  to  do  as  he  likes?  Why,  if  it  does,  it  would  remind  one 
of  the  liberty  that  a  man  took  with  another  man  in  Ireland. 
He  took  the  liberty  to  go  into  the  man's  house,  and  to  sit  down 
without  being  asked.  And  he  took  the  liberty  to  make  free 
with  the  victuals.  And,  at  last,  the  man  of  the  house  was 
obliged  to  take  the  liberty  of  kicking  him  down  stairs.  No,  my 
friends,  this  is  not  liberty.  The  quintessence  of  freedom  lies, 
not  in  the  power  of  every  man  to  do  what  he  likes,  but  that  quin- 
tessence of  freedom  and  liberty  lies  in  every  man  having  his 
rights  clearly  defined.     No  matter  who  he  is,  from  the  first  to 


The  Constitution  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church.         479 

the  last,  from  the  humblest  to  the  highest  in  the  community, 
let  every  man  know  his  own  rights  ;  let  him  know  what  power 
he  has  and  what  privileges  ;  give  him  every  reasonable  freedom 
and  liberty,  and  secure  that  to  him  by  law ;  and  then,  when  you 
have  secured  every  man's  rights  and  defined  them  by  law,  make 
every  man  in  the  State,  from  the  highest  to  the  lowest,  from  the 
President  down  to  the  poorest — the  greatest  and  the  noblest,  as 
well  as  the  humblest  and  the  meanest — let  every  man  be  obliged 
to  bow  down  before  the  omnipotence  of  the  law.  A  people 
that  know  their  rights,  a  people  that  have  their  rights  thus  de- 
fined, a  people  that  are  resolved  to  assert  the  omnipotence  of 
those  rights — that  people  can  never  be  enslaved.  Now,  this 
being  the  definition  of  liberty — and  I  am  sure  that  it  comes  home 
like  conviction  to  every  man  in  this  house — what  is  freedom  ? 
That  I  know  what  rights  I  have,  and  that  no  man  will  be  allowed 
to  infringe  them.  Give  me  every  reasonable  right,  and  when  I 
have  these,  secure  them  to  me,  and  keep  away  from  me  every 
man  that  dare  to  impede  me  in  the  exercise  of  them,  that  I  may 
exercise  them  freely,  and  that  I  may  be  as  free  as  the  bird  that 
flies  and  wings  its  way  through  the  air. 

Now,  I  ask  you,  who  is  the  father  of  this  liberty  that  we  enjoy 
to-day  ? — who  is  the  father  of  it,  if  not  the  man  who  stood  be- 
tween the  barbarians,  coming  down  to  waste  with  fire  and 
sword — to  abolish  the  law,  to  abolish  governments  and  destroy 
the  peoples — the  man  that  stood  between  those  destroyers  and 
the  people,  and  said :  "  Let  us  make  laws,  and  you  respect  them, 
and  I  will  get  the  people  to  respect  them."  That  man  was  the 
Pope  of  Rome.  Who  was  the  man  that  for  a  thousand  years, 
as  a  crowned  monarch,  was  the  very  impersonation  of  the  princi- 
ple of  law,  but  the  Pope?  Who  was  the  man  that  was  equally 
ready  to  crush  the  poor  man  and  the  rich  man,  the  king  and  the 
people — to  crush  them  by  the  weight  of  his  authority — when 
they  violated  that  law  and  refused  to  recognize  that  palladium 
of  human  liberty  ?  It  was  the  Pope  of  Rome.  Who  was  the 
man  whose  genius  inspired  and  whose  ability  contributed  to  the 
foundation  and  the  very  institutions  of  the  Italian  Republics  and 
of  the  ancient  liberties  of  Spain  in  the  early  Middle  Ages? 
Who  was  the  man  that  protected  them  from  the  tyranny  of  the 
cruel  barons,  fortified  in  their  castles  ?  He  was  the  man  whose 
house  was  a  sanctuary  for  the  weak  and  persecuted,  who  sur- 


480         The  Constitution  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church. 

rounded  that  house  with  all  the  censures  and  vengeance  of  the 
Church  against  any  one  who  would  violate  its  sanctity.     Who 
labored,  by  degrees,  patiently,  for  more  than  a  thousand  years, 
until   he  at   length   succeeded   in  elaborating  the  principles  of 
modern  freedom  and  modern  society  from  out  the  chaotic  ruin 
and  confusion  of  these  ages  of  barbarism?     Who  was  he — the 
father  of  civilization — the  father  of  the  world  ?     History  asserts, 
and  asserts  loudly,  that  he  was  the  royal  Pope  of  Rome.     And 
now  the  gratitude  of  the  world  has  been  to  shake  his  ancient 
and  time-honored  throne,  and  to  pluck  the  kingly  crown  from 
his  brow  in  his  old  age,  after  seventy  years  of  usefulness  and  of 
glory,  and  to  confine  him,  a  prisoner,  practically,  in  the  Vatican 
palace  in  Rome.     A  prisoner,  I  say,  practically  ;  for  how  can  he 
be  considered  other  than  a  prisoner,  who  cannot  go  out  of  his 
palace  into  the  streets  of  the  city,  without  hearing  the  ribaldry, 
the  profanity,  the  obscenity,  and  the  blasphemy,  to  which  his 
aged,  pure,  and  virgin  ears  had  never  lent  themselves  for  a  mo- 
ment of  his  life.     Yes — he  is  dethroned,  but  not  dishonored  ; 
uncrowned,  but  not  dishonored ;  not  uncrowned  by  the  wish  of 
his  own  people,  I  assert,  for  I  have  lived  for  twelve  years  amidst 
them,  and  I  know  he  never  oppressed  them.     He  never  drove 
them  forth — the  youth  of  his  subjects — to  be  slaughtered  on  the 
battle-field,  because  he  had  some  little  enmity  or  jealousy  against 
his  fellow-monarch.     He  never  loaded  them  with  taxes,  nor  op- 
pressed them  until  life  became  too  heavy  to  bear.     Uncrowned, 
indeed,  but  not  dishonored,  though  we  behold  him  seated  in 
the  desolate  halls  of  the  once  glorious  Vatican,  abandoned  by 
all  human  help,  and  by  the  sympathy  of  nearly  all  the  world  ! 
But  upon  those  aged  brows  there  rests  a  crown — a  triple  crown 
— that  no  human  hand  can  ever  pluck  from  his  brow,  because 
that  crown  has  been  set  on  that  head  by  the  hand  of  Jesus 
Christ  and  by  His  Church. 

That  triple  crown,  my  friends,  is  the  crown  of  spiritual 
supremacy  ;  the  crown  of  infallibility  ;  the  crown  of  perpetuity. 
In  the  day  when  Christ  said  to  Peter :  "  Confirm  now  thy 
brethren  ;  feed  My  lambs  ;  feed  My  sheep  ;  to  thee  I  give  the 
keys  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven  ;  "  in  that  day  He  made  Peter 
supreme  among  the  apostles.  His  words  meant  this  or  meant 
nothing.  Peter  wielded  that  sceptre  of  supremacy ;  and  nothing 
is  more  clearly  pointed  out   in  the  subsequent  inspired  history 


The  Constitution  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church.         481 

of  the  Church,  as  recorded  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  than 
the  fact  that  when  Peter  spoke  every  other  man,  apostle  or 
otherwise,  was  silent,  and  accepted  Peter's  word  as  the  last  de- 
cision, from  which  there  was  no  appeal.  Never,  in  the  Church 
of  God,  has  Peter's  successor  ceased  to  assert  broadly,  emphati- 
cally, and  practically,  this  primacy.  Never  was  a  council  con- 
vened in  the  Catholic  Church  except  on  the  commands  of  the 
Pope.  Never  did  a  council  of  bishops  presume  to  sit  down  and 
deliberate  upon  matters  of  faith  and  morals  except  under  the 
guidance,  and  in  the  presence  of  the  Pope,  either  personally 
there,  or  there  by  his  officers  or  legates  ;  never  was  a  letter 
read  at  the  opening  of  any  council — and  they  were  constantly 
sent  to  each  succeeding  council — that  the  bishops  of  the  Church 
did  not  rise  up  and  proclaim,  "  We  hear  the  voice  of  the  Pope, 
which  is  the  voice  of  Peter  ;  and  Peter's  voice  is  the  echo  of  the 
voice  of  Jesus  Christ."  Never  did  any  man  in  the  Church  of 
God  presume  to  appeal  from  the  tribunal  of  the  pope,  even  to 
the  Church  in  council,  without  having  the  taint  of  heresy  affix- 
ed to  him.,  and  the  curse  of  disobedience  and  schism  put  upon 
him.  For  centuries  it  has  been  the  recognized  principle  of  the 
Catholic  Church  that  no  man  can  lawfully  appeal  to  any  tribunal 
from  the  decision  of  the  Pope  in  matters  spiritual,  or  in  matters, 
touching  faith  and  morality,  because  there  is  no  tribunal  to  ap^ 
peal  to,  save  that  of  God.  He  represents  (as  the  visible  head 
of  the  Church)  the  Invisible  Head,  who  is  none  other  than  Jesus 
Christ.  The  consequence  is,  that  the  Church,  as  a  kingdom,, 
like  every  other  State,  has  its  last  grand  tribunal,  just  like  the 
House  of  Lords  in  England,  just  like  the  Supreme  Court 
of  the  United  States  in  Washington,  from  which  there  is 
no  appeal.  What  follows  from  this  ?  There  is  no  ap- 
peal from  the  Pope's  decision.  There  never  has  been.  Is  the 
Church  bound  by  that  decision  ?  Certainly  ;  because  the  Church 
is  bound  in  obedience  to  her  head  ;  one  man  alone  can  command 
the  obedience  of  the  Church  and  the  duty  of  submission  ;  and 
that  man  is  the  Pope,  He  has  always  commanded  it ;  and  no 
one  has  dared  to  appeal  from  his  decision,  because,  as  I  said 
before,  he  is  the  viceroy,  the  visible  head  of  the  Church,  in 
whom,  officially,  is  the  voice  of  Jesus  Christ  present  with  His 
Church. 

What  follows  from  this,  my  friends?    If  it  be  true  that  the 

31 


482         The  Constitution  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church. 

Church  of  God  can  never  believe  a  lie  ;  if  it  be  true  that  she  can 
never  be  called  upon  by  a  voice,  that  she  is  bound  to  obey,  to 
accept  a  lie ;  if  it  be  true  that  nothing  false  in  doctrine,  or  un- 
sound in  morality,  can  ever  be  received  by  the  Church  of  God, 
or  ever  be  imposed  upon  her,  for  He  who  founded  her  said  : 
"  The  gates  of  hell  shall  never  prevail  against  My  Church  ;  "  then 
it  follows  that — if  there  be  no  appeal  from  the  Pope's  decision, 
but  only  submission  on  the  part  of  the  Church — it  follows  that 
the  Pope,  when  he  speaks  as  the  head  of  the  Church  ;  when  he 
preaches  to  the  whole  Church  ;  when  he  bears  witness  to  the 
Church's  belief  and  the  Church's  morality;  when  he  propounds 
a  certain  doctrine  to  her — upon  a  body  that  can  never  believe 
a  lie,  that  can  never  act  upon  a  lie,  whose  destiny  it  is  to  re- 
main pure  in  doctrine  and  in  morality — pure  as  the  Son  of  God 
who  created  her;  it  follows  that  when  the  Pope  propounds  that 
doctrine  to  the  Church,  he  cannot  propound  a  lie  to  her,  or 
force  that  lie  upon  her  belief.  In  plain  words,  the  Pope  may 
make  a  mistake.  If  he  write  a  book,  as  a  private  author,  he  may 
put  something  in  it  that  is  not  true.  If  he  propound  certain 
theories,  unconnected  with  faith  and  morals,  he  may  be  as  mis- 
taken as  you  or  I.  But  the  moment  the  Pope  stands  up  before 
the  holy  Church  of  God,  and  says :  "  This  is  the  Church's  be- 
lief; this  has  been  from  the  beginning  her  belief;  this  is  her 
tradition  ;  this  is  her  truth ;  "  then  he  cannot,  under  such  cir- 
cumstances, teach  the  Catholic  Church — the  spouse  of  Jesus 
Christ — a  lie.  Consequently,  he  is  infallible.  I  do  not  give  the 
Church's  infallibility  as  the  intrinsic  reason  of  Papal  infallibility, 
but  I  say  this :  That  if  any  reasoning  man  admits  that  Christ 
founded  an  infallible  Church,  it  follows,  of  necessity,  that  he 
must  admit  an  infallible  head.  It  was  but  three  or  four  days 
ago  that  I  was  disputing  with  an  Unitarian  minister,  a  man  of 
intelligence  and  of  deep  learning,  as  clever  a  man,  almost,  as  I 
ever  met  ;  and  he  said  to  me :  "  If  I  once  admitted  that  the 
Church  was  infallible,  that  she  could  not  err,  that  moment  I 
would  have  to  admit  the  infallibility  of  the  Pope  ;  for  how  on 
earth  can  you  imagine  a  Church  that  cannot  err,  bound  to  believe 
a  man  that  commands  her  to  tell  a  lie  !  It  is  impossible  ;  it  is 
absurd  upon  the  face  of  it."  And  so,  my  friends,  it  has  ever 
been  the  belief  and  faith  of  the  Catholic  Church,  that  the  Pope 
is  preserved  by  the  same  spirit  of  truth  that  preserves  the  Church, 


The  Co7istitiition  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church         483 

But,  you  will  ask  me,  "  If  this  be  the  case,  tell  me  how  is  it 
that  it  was  only  three  or  four  years  ago  the  Church  declared  that 
the  Pope  was  infallible?"  I  answer  that  the  Catholic  Church 
cannot — it  is  not  alone  that  she  will  not,  but  she  cannot — teach 
anything  new,  anything  unheard  of.  She  cannot  find  a  truth,  as 
it  were,  as  a  man  would  find  a  guinea  under  a  stone.  She  can- 
not go  looking  for  new  ideas  and  saying,  "  Ah  !  I  find  this  is 
new!  Did  you  ever  hear  it  before?"  The  Church  cannot 
say  that.  She  has  from  the  beginning  the  full  deposit  of  Cath- 
olic truth  in  her  hand  ;  she  has  it  in  her  instinct ;  she  has  it  in 
her  mind;  but  it  is  only  now  and  then,  when  a  sore  emergency 
is  put  upon  her,  and  she  cannot  help  it,  that  the  Church  of  God 
declares  this  truth,  or  that,  or  the  other,  which  she  has  always 
believed  to  be  a  revelation  of  God,  and  crystallizes  her  faith  and 
belief  and  tradition  in  the  prismatic  form  of  dogmatic  definition. 
Which  of  us  doubts  that  the  very  foundations  of  the  Catholic 
Church  rest  upon  the  belief  that  Christ  our  Lord,  the  Re- 
deemer, was  the  Son  of  God  ?  It  is  the  very  foundation-stone 
of  Christianity.  This  has  been  the  essence  of  all  religion  since 
the  Son  of  God  became  man.  And  yet,  my  friends,  for  three 
hundred  years  the  Catholic  Church  had  not  said  a  single  word 
about  the  divinity  of  Christ ;  and  it  was  only  after  three  hundred 
years,  when  a  man  named  Arius  rose  up  and  said  :  "  It  is  all  a 
mistake  ;  the  Son  of  Mary  is  not  the  Son  of  God.  He  who  suf- 
fered and  died  on  the  Cross  was  not  the  Son  of  God,  but  a 
mere  man  ;  " — then,  after  three  hundred  years,  the  Church  turned 
round  and  said  :  "  If  any  man  says  that  Jesus  Christ  is  not  God, 
let  that  man  be  accursed  as  an  infidel  and  a  heretic."  Would 
any  of  you  say,  "  Then  it  seems  that  for  three  hundred  years 
the  Church  did  not  believe  it?"  No,  she  always  believed  it ;  it 
was  always  a  foundation-stone.  "  If  she  did  believe  it,  why 
didn't  she  define  it  ?  "  I  answer,  the  occasion  had  not  arisen. 
It  is  only  when  some  invader,  when  some  proud,  heretical  man, 
when  some  bad  spirit  manifests  itself  among  the  people,  that 
the  Church  is  obliged  to  come  out  and  say — "  Take  care ! 
take  care  !  Remember  this  is  the  true  faith,"  and  then,  when 
she  declares  her  faith,  it  becomes  a  dogmatic  definition,  and  all 
Catholics  are  bound  to  bow  to  it.  Need  I  tell  you,  Irish  maids, 
Irish  mothers,  and  Irish  men — need  I  tell  you  how  St.  Patrick 
preached   of  the   woman   whom  he   called  Muire  Mhathnire^ 


484         The  Constitution  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church. 

"  Mary  Mother,"  the  woman  whom  he  called  the  Virgin  of 
God  ?  Need  I  tell  you  that  the  Church  always  believed  that 
that  woman  was  the  Mother  of  God  ?  And  yet  you  will  be 
surprised  to  hear  that  at  the  time  that  St.  Patrick  preached  to 
the  Irish  people,  the  Church  had  not  yet  defined  it  as  an  article 
of  faith.  It  was  only  in  the  fifth  century  that  the  Church  at 
Ephesus  declared  dogmatically  that  Mary  was  the  Mother  of 
God.  Didn't  she  believe  it  before  ?  Certainly.  It  was  no 
new  thing ;  she  always  believed  it  ;  but  there  was  no  necessity 
to  assert  it  till  heretics  denied  it.  Then,  to  guard  her  children 
from  the  error  which  was  being  asserted,  she  had  to  define  her 
faith.  Did  not  the  Church  always  believe  the  presence  of 
Christ  transubstantiated  in  the  Eucharist?  Most  certainly. 
All  history  tells  us  that  she  believed  it.  Her  usages,  her  ceremo- 
nies, everything  in  her  points  to  that  divine  presence  as  their  life 
and  centre,  but  it  was  sixteen  hundred  years  before  the  Church 
defined  it  as  an  article  of  faith,  then  only  because  Calvin  denied 
it.  He  was  the  first  heretic  to  deny  it.  It  was  denied  by  Be- 
rengarius,  a  learned  man  in  the  thirteenth  century  ;  but  he  im- 
mediately repented,  and  burned  his  book,  and  there  was  an  end 
of  it.  But  the  first  man  to  preach  a  denial  of  the  real  presence 
of  Christ  was  Calvin.  Luther  never  did.  We  must  give  the 
devil  his  due.  The  Church  of  God  declared  that  Christ  was 
present,  and  that  the  substance  of  bread  and  wine  was  changed 
into  the  body  and  blood  of  the  Lord.  And  so,  in  our  day,  the 
Church  for  the  first  time  found  it  necessary  to  declare  that  her 
head,  her  visible  head,  cannot  teach  her  a  lie.  It  seems  such 
an  outrage  upon  common  sense  to  deny  this — it  seems  so  pal- 
pable and  plain,  from  the  very  constitution  of  the  Church,  that 
it  seems  as  if  the  definition  of  this  dogma  was  unnecessary. 
Yet,  in  truth,  it  was  to  meet  the  proud,  self-asserting,  caviling, 
questioning  spirit  of  our  day  that  the  Church  was  obliged  to 
do  this.  It  was  because,  guided  by  a  wise  Providence,  scarcely 
knowing,  yet  foreseeing  that  which  was  to  come — that  the  Pope 
was  to  be  deprived  of  all  the  prestige  of  his  temporal  power  ; 
that  all  that  surrounded  him  in  Rome  was  to  be  lost  to  him  for 
a  time  ;  that,  perhaps,  it  was  his  destiny  to  be  driven  out  and 
exiled,  and  a  stranger  amongst  other  men  on  the  face  of  the 
earth,  so  that  he  might  be  unknown,  lost  sight  of — that  the 
Church  of  God,  with  her  eight  hundred  bishops,  rising  up  in  the 


The  Constitution  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church.         485 

strength  of  her  guiding  spirit,  fixed  upon  the  brow  of  her  Pon- 
tiff the  seal  of  her  faith  in  his  infallibility,  that  wherever  he 
goes,  wherever  he  is  found,  whatever  misfortunes  may  be  his 
lot,  he  will  still  have  that  seal  upon  him  which  no  other  man 
can  bear,  and  which  is  the  stamp  of  the  Head  of  the  Catholic 
Church, 

And  now,  my  friends,  we  come  to  the  last  characteristic  of 
that  spiritual  tiara  that  rests  upon  the  brow  of  Pius  IX.  It  is 
the  crown  of  perpetuity.  There  is  no  man  necessary  in  this 
world  but  one.  We  are  here  to-day ;  we  die  to-morrow,  and 
others  take  our  places.  The  kings  of  the  earth  are  not  neces- 
sary. Sometimes — the  Lord  knows — it  would  be  as  well  if  they 
did  not  exist  at  all.  The  statesmen  and  philosophers  of  the 
earth  are  not  necessary.  My  friends,  the  politicians  of  to-day 
are  scarcely  a  necessity.  We  might  manage  by  a  little 
engineering — and,  above  all,  by  a  little  more  honesty  — 
to  get  on  without  them.  One  alone  was  necessary  to  this 
world  from  the  beginning,  and  that  was  He  whom  we  be- 
hold upon  the  cross  on  Good  Friday  morning — He  alone. 
Without  Him  we  were  all  lost ;  no  grace,  but  sin  ;  no  purity, 
but  corruption;  no  heaven,  but  hell.  He  was  necessary, 
from  the  beginning ;  and  the  only  man  that  is  now  neces- 
sary upon  the  earth  is  the  man  that  represents  Him.  We 
cannot  get  on  without  him.  The  Church  must  have  her 
head,  and  He  who  declared  that  the  Church  was  to  last  unto 
the  end  of  time  will  take  good  care  to  keep  her  head.  He  is 
under  the  hand  of  God ;  and  under  the  hand  of  the  Ruler  of 
the  Church  we  can  well  afford  to  leave  him.  He  will  take  good 
care  of  him.  As  a  temporal  ruler  I  assert  still  that  the  Pope  is 
the  only  necessary  ruler  on  the  face  of  the  earth.  He  is  neces- 
sary, because,  not  establishing  his  power  by  the  sword  ;  not 
preserving  it  by  the  sword  ;  not  enlarging  his  dominions  by  the 
sword,  or  by  injustice  ;  as  a  monarch,  as  a  king,  he  represents 
the  principle  of  right  unprotected  by  might,  and  of  justice  and 
law,  enthroned  by  the  common  consent  of  all  the  nations.  In 
the  day  when  might  shall  assume  the  place  of  right ;  in  the  day 
when  a  man  cannot  find  two  square  feet  of  earth  on  which  to 
build  a  throne,  without  bloodshed  and  injustice;  in  that  day, 
when  it  comes,  the  Pope  will  no  longer  be  necessary  as  a  tem- 
poral sovereign  ;  but  pray  God,  that  before  that  day  comes,  you 


486         The  Constitution  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church. 

and  I  be  in  our  graves  ;  for  when  that  day  comes,  if  ever  it 
comes,  life  will  be  no  blessing,  and  existence  upon  this  earth 
will  be  a  curse  rather  than  a  joy.  The  Pope  is  necessary,  be- 
cause some  power  is  needed  to  stand  between  the  kings  and  the 
people ;  some  power  before  which  kings  must  bow  down  ;  some 
voice  recognized  as  the  voice,  not  of  a  subject,  not  of  an  ordi- 
nary man,  or  an  ordinary  bishop  ;  a  voice  as  of  a  king  amongst 
kings  ;  some  voice  which  will  confound  the  jealousies,  and  pas- 
sions, and  scandals  of  the  rulers  of  the  earth,  which  only  serve 
as  so  many  means  to  shed  the  blood  of  the  people.  Our  best 
security  is  the  crown  that  rests  upon  the  brow  of  a  peaceful 
king.  Our  best  security  is  the  crown  that  rests  upon  the 
brow  of  a  man  who  was  always  and  ever  ready  to  shield  the 
weak  from  the  powerful,  and  to  save  to  woman  her  honor,  her 
dignity,  her  place  in  the  family,  her  maternity,  from  the  treach- 
ery, and  the  villainy,  and  the  inconstancy  of  man  ;  to  strip  off 
the  chains  of  the  slave,  and  to  prepare  him  before  emancipation 
for  the  glorious  gift  of  freedom.  This  power  is  the  Pope's,  and 
he  has  exercised  it  honestly  and  well.  Protestant  historians 
will  tell  you  that  the  Pope  was  the  father  of  liberty  ;  that  he 
was  the  founder  of  modern  civilization,  and  that  the  crown  that 
was  upon  his  head  was  the  homage  paid  by  the  nations  to  his 
clemency,  and  mercy,  and  justice,  and  law.  And  therefore,  he 
must  come  back;  he  must  come  and  seat  himself  upon  the 
throne  again.  The  day  will  come  for  which  all  the  Catholics 
in  the  world  are  desirous.  And  when  that  day  comes,  and  not 
till  then,  justice  shall  be  once  more  tempered  by  mercy;  abso- 
lutism shall  be  once  more  neutralized  by  the  constitutional  lib- 
erties and  privileges  of  the  people.  When  that  day  comes,  the 
people,  on  their  side,  will  feel  the  strong  yet  quiet  restraining 
hand  enforcing  the  law  ;  while  the  kings,  on  their  side,  will  be- 
hold once  more  the  hated  and  detested  vision  of  the  hand  of 
the  Pontiff  brandishing  the  thunders  of  the  Vatican.  That  day 
must  come,  and  with  it  will  come  the  dawn  of  a  better  day,  a 
day  of  peace.  And  I  believe,  even  now,  in  this  future  day, 
in  this  coming  year,  we  shall  behold  the  Pope  advancing  at 
the  head  of  all  the  rulers  of  the  earth,  and  pointing  out,  with 
sceptred  hand,  the  way  of  justice,  of  mercy,  of  truth,  and  of 
freedom.  We  shall  behold  him,  when  all  the  nations  of  the 
earth  shall  greet  his  return  to  power,  shall  greet  his  entry  into 


The  Constitution  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church.         487 

the  council  chambers  of  their  sovereigns,  even  as  the  Jews 
greeted  the  entry  of  Christ  into  Jerusalem,  and  hailed  Him 
King.  I  behold  him  when,  foremost  among  the  nations  that 
shall  greet  him  in  that  hour,  a  sceptred  monarch  and  crowned 
king,  a  temporal  ruler,  and,  far  more,  a  spiritual  father — amongst 
these  nations  the  mighty,  the  young,  the  glorious,  and  the  free 
America  will  present  herself.  When  this  land — so  mighty  in 
its  extent  and  the  limits  of  its  power,  that  it  cannot  afford  to 
be  anything  else  than  Catholic — for  no  other  faith  can  be  com- 
mensurate with  so  mighty  a  nation — when  this  land,  this  glori- 
ous America,  developing  her  resources,  rising  into  that  awful 
majesty  of  power  that  will  shake  the  world  and  shape  its  desti- 
nies, will  find  every  other  religious  garb  too  small  and  too  mis- 
erable to  cover  her  stately  form,  save  the  garb  of  the  Catholic 
faith,  the  Christian  garment  in  which  the  Church  of  God  will 
envelop  her  ; — and  she,  strong  in  her  material  power,  strong  in 
her  lofty  intelligence,  strong  in  that  might  that  will  place  her 
at  the  front  of  the  nations,  shall  be  the  first  to  hail  her  Pontiff, 
her  father,  and  her  king,  and  to  establish  him  upon  his  ancient 
throne  as  the  emblem  and  the  centre  of  the  faith  and  the  glori- 
ous religion  of  a  united  people,  whose  strength — the  strength 
of  intellect — the  strength  of  faith,  the  strength  of  material  power 
— will  raise  up,  before  the  eyes  of  a  wondering  and  united  world, 
a  new  vision  of  the  recuperative  power  and  majesty  and  great- 
ness of  the  Almighty  God,  as  reflected  in  His  Church. 


THE    CATHOLIC    VIEW  OF 
EDUCATION. 


[Delivered  in  St.  John's  College,  Brooklyn.] 

Y  Friends  :  When  a  Catholic  priest  addresses  a  Cath- 
olic audience,  the  subject  which  he  puts  before  them 
must  always  be  of  very  great  importance  ;  for  the  bur- 
den of  his  message  is  something  touching  the  eternal 
welfare  of  the  people,  the  glory  of  God,  and  the  well-being  of 
society.     And,  amongst   the   range  of  subjects   which  are  thus 
opened  to  him — sacramentally  and  otherwise — there  is  not    one 
so  important  as  that   upon  which   I  am    now  to  address  you, 
namely  :  the  subject  of  "  Catholic  Education."     For  it  regards 
the  young  children  ;  and  we  know  that,  as  the  child  is  father 
of  the  man,  so   the  society  of  children   is  the  parent   of  the  fu- 
ture of  society  which  is  to  bloom  and  to  flourish  in  every  coun- 
try.    Whatever  affects  children,  affects  society  ;  whatever  influ- 
ences are  brought   to  bear  upon  them  in  youth — which   is   the 
spring-time  of  life — those  influences  will   produce  that  correla- 
tion, either  for  good  or  evil,  for  joy  or  sorrow,  in  the  future  of 
that  society.     Therefore  it  is  that  the  question  of  education  is 
the  most  important  question  of  all.     First  of  all,  because  the 
future  depends  upon  it.     When   the  farmer  breaks  his  land  in 
the  spring  ;  when  he  runs  the  plough  through  it ;  when  he  har- 
rows it — he  has  it  all  prepared  ;  but  the  greatest  question  of  all  is 
what  kind  of  seed  is  he  going  to  put  into  that  soil  ?     For  if  he 
throw  in  infirm  wheat,  or  bad   seed,  the  harvest  which  he  will 
reap,  in  three   or  four  months'  time,  will  be  bad,  because  the 
seed  was  bad.     If,  on  the  other  hand,  he  throw  in  good  seed,  he 
may  reasonably  look  forward  to  an  abundant  and  good  harvest, 
because  of  the  seed  which  he  had  sown.     For  an  authority 


The  Catholic   View  of  Education.  489 

more  than  human  tells  us:  "Whatsoever  a  man  shall  sow,  the 
same  shall  he  reap." 

The  question  is  most  important,  not  only  because  the  future 
depends  upon  it,  but  because  any  error  committed  in  relation  to 
this  question  of  education  is  an  error  that  can  scarcely  be  reme- 
died. If  the  farmer  sows  bad  seed — if  he  perceives,  when  the 
green  blade  is  coming  up,  that  his  sowing  is  a  failure  ;  if  he  per- 
ceives that  the  crop  promised  by  the  distant  harvest  will  be  a 
failure,  because  of  the  infirm  wheat — it  is  too  late  for  him,  in 
the  month  of  May  or  June,  to  discover  his  error.  He  cannot 
break  ground  again  ;  he  cannot  make  that  seed  good ;  he  can- 
not, like  him  of  old,  order  the  sun  to  stand  in  the  heavens,  or 
bring  back  the  genial  time  of  spring  upon  the  earth  once  more. 
So  of  education  ;  it  is  the  sowing  of  the  seed  in  the  young 
mind — in  the  spring-time  of  life — in  the  days  when  the  soil  is 
prepared  to  receive  that  seed,  when  the  heart  is  yet  soft  to  re- 
ceive its  impressions,  before  it  hardens,  and  these  impressions 
become  indelibly  fixed  in  the  man's  character  by  the  ripening 
action  of  age.  Whilst  the  mind  is  yet  open  to  receive  the 
treasures  of  knowledge — human  and  divine — if  the  seed  that  is 
thrown  into  that  young  mind  and  that  young  heart  be  bad  or 
poisonous,  most  infallibly  the  future  life  of  that  man  will  be  a 
bad  harvest  of  the  seed  which  it  received  in  the  spring.  No 
man  can  expect  an  abundant  harvest  of  grace,  morality,  or 
goodness  unless  he  be  provided  in  the  beginning  with  a  good 
education.  Again,  if  there  be  any  fault  in  the  seed,  if  it  is 
found  to  be  of  an  inferior  character — if  it  has  been  found  to 
be  largely  mixed  with  bad  grains — it  is  too  late  to  make  this 
discovery  when  the  child  has  ripened  into  youth — when  the 
youth  has  matured  into  manhood — for  then  principles  are  well 
established,  and  opinions  are  deeply  and  indelibly  fixed.  Again, 
the  state  of  life  is  chosen  by  him ;  he  has  found  the  road  which 
he  will  go ;  for  wisdom — again  more  than  human — tells  us,  it  is 
too  late  to  try  to  bend  the  tree  when  it  has  grown  into  goodly 
proportions.  That  work  of  bending  must  take  place  while  it  is 
yet  a  tender  twig.  This  being  the  case,  it  follows  that  there  is 
as  necessity  for  education  for  all. 

Coming  to  this  first  aspect  of  this  great  question,  I  find  the 
Redeemer  of  the  world — the  highest  authority,  because  He  is 
God — declaring  that  the  first  want  of  man  is  education,  and 


490  The  Catholic   View  of  Education. 

that  all  the   evils  that  fill  the  world  may  be  traced,  as  to  their 
source,  to  the  want  of  education.     Christ,  our  Lord,  my  friends, 
was   not   only  the  Redeemer  of  the   world,  but   he   was   also  a 
prophet.     The  Scriptures  speak  of  Him  as  a  teacher.     "Grace 
poured  abroad  from  His  lips ;  therefore.  Lord,  let  us  bless  Thee 
for  ever."     The  Scriptures  speak  of  Him   as  a  prophet  of  this 
world.     Moses  says :  "  I  will  send  unto  thee  a  prophet  of  thine 
own  nation,  like  unto  me.     Him  shalt  thou  hear."     Now,  upon 
a  solemn  occasion.  He  was  approaching  the  city  of  Jerusalem. 
The  people  went  forth  to  meet  Him,  with  acclamation  and  with 
joy,  waving  palm   branches  before   Him  ;  a  sign  of  their  grati- 
tude ;  for   He   who   came    to   them  was   blessed,  coming  in  the 
name  of  the  Lord,  Israel's  king.     And   they  cried,  "  Hosanna 
to  the  Son  of  David  ! "     But,  in   the  midst  of  their  joy,  in  the 
midst  of  their  tumultuous  gratitude,  we  read  in  the  Gospel,  that 
the  Son  of  God — who  saw  the  city — wept  over  it  bitter  tears. 
He  said  :  "  O  Jerusalem,  the  time  will  come  to  thee  when  thine 
enemies    shall  encompass   thee  around,   and    straiten    thee  on 
every  side.     They  shall  cast  a  trench  about  thee,  and  beat  thee 
flat  with  the  ground  ;  and  they  shall  not  leave  of  thee  a  stone 
upon  a  stone."     What  was  the   cause,  the  sign,  of  this  terrific 
prophecy?     He  immediately  added  the  reason  :  "  Because  thou 
hast  not  known  these  things  that  are  good  for  thee ;  because  of 
thy  ignorance,  O   Jerusalem  ;  therefore   shall  all  thine  enemies 
come  in  upon  thee."     Is   not  this  what   He  said?     And  to  the 
Jewish   priests:    "Hear   Me;  ye   are   not   of   My   priests,"  He 
says,  "because  you  have  rejected  knowledge,  I  will  reject  you, 
and  you  will  no  longer  fulfil  the   duty  of  the  priesthood    unto 
me ;  because   My   people   were    silent ;  because   they   have   no 
knowledge."     Elsewhere,  the  prophet  says  :  "  There  is  no  truth, 
there   is   no   knowledge  of  God  in  the  land."     He  immediately 
added  that,  "  Cursing,  lying,  infidelity,  adultery,  abound,  because 
there  is  no  knowledge   of  the   Lord  in  the  land."     To  cap  the 
climax  of  all  that  the  Omnipotent  says  on  this  point,  we  have 
the  apostle  and  the  inspired  writer  saying  of  the  Jewish  people, 
"  If  they  had  known,  if  they  had  knowledge,  they  never  would 
have  crucified  the  Lord  of  Glory."     And,  passing  from  the  evi- 
dence of  the  grand  words  of  Scripture — looking  at   this  great 
fact  simply  with  eyes  of  reason — do  we  not  know,  my  friends, 
that  there  are  two  lives  in  man  ;  that  man  is  a  wonderful  being  in 


The  Catholic  View  of  Education.  491 

whom  two  distinct  natures  meet.  Almighty  God  has  created 
in  this  world  the  mere  animal  and  material  nature — the  animal, 
that  reasons  not ;  that  only  feels  and  lives.  The  trees  of  the 
forest  grow,  and  the  flowers  of  the  field ;  they  reason  not, 
neither  do  they  feel ;  but  they  live.  The  animal  object  that  is 
in  man  has  not  feeling,  but  only  existence.  On  the  other  hand, 
God  has  created  in  heaven  a  higher  order  of  purely  spiritual 
beings,  in  the  angels — like  to  Himself,  in  that  they  are  pure 
spirits,  in  that  they  are  utterly  dissociated  from  everything  gross, 
corporeal,  and  material ;  in  that  they  are  pure  intelligence,  pure 
love,  gifted  with  power  and  virtue  over  the  will.  Observe  the 
difference  of  these  two  great  ranks  of  creation — things  that  do 
not  reason  at  all,  that  only  feel ;  and  things  that  do  not  feel  at 
all,  but  reason — the  animal  and  the  angelic.  Then  comes  the  man 
— the  golden  link  in  the  creation  of  God  ;  in  whom  the  inferior 
creation  and  the  superior  meet ;  in  whom  the  angelic  soul,  the 
prime  spiritual  essence,  and  the  mere  animal,  the  mere  material 
thing,  embrace.  Therefore,  man  is  a  being  made  up  of  two 
natures  ;  the  angelic — spiritual,  God-like — which  is  his  soul  ; 
and  the  material — animal  and  brutal — which  is  his  body.  As 
these  are  elements,  or  sub-divisions,  united  in  man's  life,  so,  in 
the  divine  destiny,  he  lives,  in  his  two-fold  figure  of  life,  the  life 
of  the  body  and  the  life  of  the  soul — the  life  of  the  body,  with 
its  appetites,  v/ith  its  passions,  with  its  strong,  almost  ungovern- 
able desires,  and  with  its  animal  propensities — the  life  of  the 
soul,  with  its  lofty  aspirations  to  heaven,  and,  as  regards  its 
ultimate  destiny,  of  everlasting  glory.  The  body  must  be  born  ; 
so  must  the  soul.  The  body  must  be  fed ;  so  must  the  soul. 
The  body  must  be  exercised  ;  so  must  the  soul.  Now,  the  life 
of  the  soul,  the  exercise  of  the  soul,  the  food  of  the  soul,  I 
assert,  is  knowledge  ;  and,  therefore,  it  is  as  necessary  for  the 
soul  as  food  for  the  body.  The  soul  we  are  obliged  to  exercise 
as  well  as  our  inferior  corporal  nature.  If  you  neglect  either 
one  or  the  other,  its  power  fails.  A  little  infant  is  born  into 
this  world ;  if  you  neglect  that  child,  or  stint  that  child  in  its 
food,  it  grows  poor,  and  puny,  and  weak.  If  you  give  that 
child  no  sustenance,  it  will  die.  And  why  ?  Because  it  is  mor- 
tal. The  soul,  on  the  other  hand,  when  deprived  of  food,  grows 
not  at  all ;  it  cannot  die,  because  it  is  immortal ;  but  it  can  re- 
main in  the  same  state  of  helplessness,  of  infancy,  of  imbecility, 


492  The  Catholic  View  of  Education. 

in  which  it  was  in  the  first  day  of  its  birth,  unless  it  receives  ali- 
ment, strengthening,  the  food  of  instruction,  education,  and 
morality. 

Man  differs  from  all  other  creatures  in  this  world,  in  that  he 
has  been  created  by  Almighty  God  to  live  in  society.  Every 
other  animal  on  the  face  of  this  earth  leads  an  isolated,  solitary, 
and  independent  life,  each  one  living  for  itself.  Man  alone  is 
created  for  society  ;  to  live  for  his  fellow-men  ;  to  enter  into 
their  cares  ;  to  commune  with  them  ;  to  take  a  portion  of  the 
public  burden  of  society  ;  to  move  through  life,  not  only  for 
himself,  but  for  those  around  him.  Now,  that  state  of  society 
is  rude  that  has  no  intercommunication  of  intellectual  feeling : 
and  the  man  who  is  utterly  uneducated  is  incapable  of  fulfilling 
his  obligations  to  society.  Take  a  man  utterly  without  instruc- 
tion, and  what  have  you  as  far  as  regards  society?  He  is  in- 
capable of  communicating  with  his  fellow-man  ;  for  all  such  com- 
munion of  intellect  or  of  power  he  is  incapable,  because  he  is 
utterly  uninstructed.  He  is  the  greatest  enemy  of  society. 
Why  ?  Because  every  power  of  his  soul  is  left  untouched.  The 
angelic  nature  lies  dormant  within  him.  No  gentle  thought,  no 
softening  remembrance  of  heavenly  things  ever  comes  to  move 
the  unenlightened  wretch.  No  generous  impulse,  no  lofty  pur- 
pose, no  spirit  of  heroic  sacrifice,  is  found  in  him.  He  is  the 
enemy  of  society  ;  for  he  turns  in  upon  his  solitary  self,  in  whom 
he  finds  no  actual  quality  of  good  ;  the  very  idea  of  moral  good 
is  a  stranger  to  him,  because  of  his  benighted  condition.  Take 
him  in  his  relations  to  God.  What  says  He  of  him  who  has  not 
knowledge  ?  What  says  the  Almighty  God  of  such  a  one  ? 
"  Man,"  says  the  Psalmist,  "  when  he  was  without  knowledge, 
understood  not ;  he  had  no  knowledge  in  him,  he  is  compared 
to  the  senseless  beasts,  made  like  to  them."  The  body  grows 
apace,  the  uninstructed  soul  remains  in  its  infancy.  The  body 
becomes  a  giant  of  passions,  of  evil  propensities,  and  of  all  the 
baser  desires.  The  infant  soul  is  unable  to  oppose  these  pas- 
sions by  a  single  principle.  It  is  unable  to  coerce  them  or 
purify  them  by  a  single  element  of  intellectual,  moral  power  or 
grace.  The  consequence  is,  that  the  will  of  man — the  source  of 
all  his  moral  power — is  removed  from  the  jurisdiction  of  intel- 
ligence, to  which  God  made  it  subject.  The  allegiance  of  the 
will  thus  follows  the  submission  of  the  mind  to  passion,  to 


The  Catholic  View  of  Education.  493 

pride,  and  to  all  the  disorders  of  the  brutal  nature.  Therefore 
it  is  that  the  thoroughly  uninstructed  man  is  unavailable  for 
any  purpose,  whether  for  God  or  for  human  society.  The 
statesman  finds  the  ignorant  man  his  difficulty ;  because  it  is 
impossible  to  legislate  for  an  uninstructed  people,  who  are  un- 
able to  comprehend  even  the  idea  of  law.  The  Church  finds 
the  uninstructed  man  her  greatest  enemy;  because  faith,  in  its 
highest  form,  is  an  appeal  to  the  intellect,  for  which  that  intel- 
lect must  be  prepared  by  education,  because  that  very  act  of 
its  exercise,  that  the  Church  imposes  upon  a  man,  requires  in- 
telligence of  a  kind  of  which  the  thoroughly  uneducated  man  is 
incapable  ;  he  is  unable  to  act  for  himself.  The  world  finds  in 
the  uneducated  man,  in  the  utterly  uninstructed  man,  its  great- 
est enemy ;  for,  though  ignorant,  he  knows  how  to  do  one  thing, 
and  that  one  thing  is,  to  follow  the  brutal  instincts,  to  follow 
the  base  inclinations,  of  his  passions  ;  and  in  the  pursuit  of  them 
he  will  set  at  hostile  defiance  every  law,  human  and  divine  ;  and 
we  see  that  he  makes  himself  the  pest,  the  canker-worm,  the 
great  enemy  of  society — an  object  of  dread. 

Hence  it  is,  my  friends,  that  the  whole  world,  the  whole 
civilized  world,  to-day  cries  out  for  education.  The  churchman, 
the  statesman,  the  priest,  the  philosopher — Catholic  and  Prot- 
estant— all  alike,  cry  out,  We  must  educate  ;  we  cannot  live  in 
society — society  cannot  exist — without  education.  And  they  are 
right  ;  for,  if  we  could  imagine  a  time  when  men  were  thoroughly 
and  completely  uninstructed,  then  we  imagine  that  there  was  a 
time  when  human  society  was  an  impossibility,  because  the  es- 
sence of  that  society  is  intercommunication.  The  statesman 
and  the  churchman  alike  declare  that  we  must  educate.  And 
they  approach  this  question — let  us  see  how. 

The  statesman  has  his  own  views  of  education  ;  the  Christian 
man — outside  the  pale  of  the  Catholic  Church — he,  too,  has  his 
view  of  education  ;  and  the  Church  has  her  view  of  education. 
I  want  to  put  these  three  before  you,  in  order  that  I  may  vindi- 
cate the  action  of  our  holy  Mother,  the  Church  ;  to  show  you 
that  she  alone  understands  the  meaning  of  that  much-abused 
word,  education. 

All  acknowledge  the  evil  of  ignorance  ;  all  acknowledge  it  is 
the  root  and  source  of  all  evil  in  society.  First  comes  the 
statesman,  and  he  says  :  "I  will  educate."     And  he  builds  up 


494  The  Catholic   View  of  Education. 

his  common  schools  and  his  colleges.  He  says  to  the  Catholic 
bishop  :  "  Stand  aside.  You  have  no  right  to  educate  the  chil- 
dren." And  he  says  to  every  man  :  "  I  will  have  no  fixed  form 
of  religious  belief!  Stand  aside;  you  are  only  sectarians  ;  I 
am  prepared  to  administer  an  unsectarian  education."  Unsec- 
tarian  education  !  What  does  this  mean,  my  friends  ?  It  means, 
in  plain  English,  teaching  without  God.  I  wish  you,  above 
everything  else,  to  remember  these  three  words,  when  you  read 
political  pamphlets,  when  you  hear  political  speeches,  when  you 
hear  men  talking  about  this  glorious  land  of  America,  the 
splendor  of  the  country  of  England,  the  enlightenment  and 
wonderful  intelligence  of  our  age.  All  that  "  unsectarian  educa- 
tion "  means,  is  teaching  without  God.  And  now,  reflect  a 
little,  my  friends,  upon  what  this  means.  We  read  in  the  Scrip- 
tures that  St.  Paul  said  :  "  The  world  has  committed  crimes 
such  as  I  am  ashamed  to  mention  ;  "  and,  turning  to  the 
Christians,  he  said  :  "  let  them  not  be  as  much  as  named 
amongst  you."  They  must  learn,  because  God  gave  them  will 
and  intelligence.  The  State  refuses  to  put  God  in  their 
knowledge.  Formerly,  they  taught  without  God.  The  world 
was  not  uneducated  when  Christ  came.  Oh  dear,  no  !  The 
schools  at  Athens  and  the  schools  at  Rome  were  as  flourish- 
ing as  any  that  we  have  to-day.  No  doubt,  among  the  children 
that  were  educated  at  Rome  and  Athens,  there  were  philoso- 
phers and  writers  as  enlightened  as  any  that  we  have  to-day 
— pooh-poohing  the  idea  of  religion.  When  Christ  and  His  re- 
ligion came  upon  the  earth.  He  told  them  that  they  must 
change,  that  they  must  teach  their  children  something  about 
God.  And  they  said  :  "  This  man,  indeed,  raises  a  few  from 
the  dead  ;  He  opens  the  eyes  of  the  blind ;  He  heals  the  sick 
and  the  paralyzed  ;  and  He  works  many  strange  miracles  that 
we  cannot  understand,  for  this  is  the  language  of  that  Christ 
who  tells  us  we  must  teach  our  sons  about  God."  And  they 
answered  the  Son  of  God,  eighteen  hundred  years  ago,  pretty 
much  in  the  same  way  as  the  "  unsectarian  "  man  does  to-day. 
What  is  teaching  or  instructing  without  God  ?  What  is  the 
meaning  of  the  word  educate  ?  It  is  derived  from  two  Latin 
words,  namely,  ex  and  duco,  to  lead  forth — to  educate — or,  as 
the  true  derivation  has  it,  to  bring  out  all  that  is  in  that  child. 
That  child  is  there  before  you,  a  child  of  seven ;  that  child  has 


The  Catholic  View  of  Education.  495 

to  become  a  man ;  that  child  is  the  father  of  the  man  that  is  to 
be  in  twenty  years'  time.  Now,  to  educate  means  to  bring  out 
in  that  young  mind  all  that  is  necessary  to  make  the  man.  Task 
you,  Christian  men,  can  that  man  be  thus  brought  out  in  the 
child  without  God  ?  Education,  if  it  is  to  make  the  man,  if  it 
is  to  bring  out  all  the  powers  that  are  in  him,  must  train  him  up 
in  the  two  great  sources,  the  education  of  the  head  and  the  edu- 
cation of  the  heart — the  two  great  powers  of  the  man  that 
reasons.  Now,  the  "  unsectarian  education  "  of  the  State 
means  to  educate  the  mind ;  it  gives  the  mind  every  form  of 
human  knowledge  ;  it  teaches  the  mind  geometry,  history,  elec- 
tricity, mathematics,  geology,  and  everything  else  ;  but  not  a 
word  about  God  at  all.  Not  a  word  of  God  must  be  mentioned. 
The  science  of  God — the  knowledge  of  God — is  the  principal 
point  of  knowledge  which  that  child  must  not  hear  :  he  must 
have  no  God.  Therefore,  whilst  the  mind  of  that  child  is  re- 
ceiving every  form  of  human  knowledge,  his  heart  is  hardening 
every  day,  more  and  more,  into  the  hardness  of  unbelief,  into 
the  preparation  for  every  form  of  helplessness,  hypocrisy,  and 
sin.  Not  a  single  scintilla  of  divine  knowledge  is  let  into  that 
child's  mind  ;  nothing  but  the  knowledge  of  this  world,  human 
knowledge.  Itself  human,  it  is  vain,  I  say.  And,  if  you  were 
not  Catholics,  I  would  still  ask  these  men,  who  pretend  to  teach 
without  God,  tell  me:  As  you  wish  only  to  teach  human  knowl- 
edge, thus  excluding  God,  then  you  wish  to  teach  history?  And 
to  teach  history  you  must  come  to  the  fountain-head  of  history; 
and  there  you  find  the  creating  God.  Will  you  exclude  this? 
If  you  teach  the  progress  of  history,  the  true  philosophy  of 
history  is  the  over-ruling  providence  of  God,  guiding  and  shaping 
all  things.  Will  you  exclude  it,  and  pretend  to  teach  that  child 
history?  What  will  you  tell  that  child  of  the  history  of  his  race, 
its  acts,  and  its  power,  if  you  exclude  Almighty  God  from  his 
knowledge  ?  Will  you  teach  that  child  philosophy — the  philoso- 
phy that  seeks  and  searches  after  truth,  that  loves  the  truth  in 
interior  things — the  philosophy  that  means  the  analysis  of  the 
human  mind  ;  the  philosophy  that  traces  every  effect  to  its 
cause — touching  that  cause  with  the  true  genius  of  its  acquaint- 
ance with  theology — and  that  follows  the  great  first  cause  of  all 
things  ?  No  ;  the  philosophy  that  excludes  God  is  simply  ab- 
surd.    Fancy  a  man  going   to   teach   mathematics — to   teach 


49^  The  Catholic   View  of  Education. 

figures — excluding  the  figure  one,  and  starting  with  the  figure 
two.  Why,  the  simplest  child  would  say,  "  But,  my  dear  sir, 
isn't  two  the  multiple  of  one  ?  "  "  It  is  not,"  this  teacher  says; 
"  there  is  no  one."  If  he  says  there  is  no  one,  how  can  he  tell 
us  there  is  two  or  three  ?  How  can  a  man  teach  philosophy  in 
a  system  ignoring  the  first  principle,  beginning  without  the  One, 
which  is  the  precise  cause  of  all  ?  In  a  word,  the  system  is  too 
absurd;  it  is  not  worthy  the  consideration  of  any  man  of 
thought.  Teaching  without  God  is  an  impossibility,  even  for 
the  men  who  pretend  to  do  it ;  and  in  its  results,  it  is  fatal  to 
society. 

Well,  let  us  suppose  they  had  their  way;  that  they  brought 
up  our  children  without  God.  Let  us  suppose  that  the  favorite 
theories  of  the  statesman  were  carried  into  effect.  The  Prot- 
estant, the  Catholic,  the  Quaker,  the  Shaker — all  want  us  to 
teach  their  form  of  religion  ;  and,  as  we  cannot  teach  their  re- 
ligion, the  best  plan  is  to  exclude  religion  altogether.  We 
know  nothing  at  all  about  religion  ;  but  we  know  how  to  teach 
them  to  read  and  write.  We  will  teach  philosophy,  and  every- 
thing; but  without  God.  Now,  the  favorite  theory  of  the 
statesman  is  put  in  practice  ;  and  what  do  they  send  home  to 
you  ?  Oh,  think  of  the  monsters  living  in  the  house  with  you — 
think  of  the  young  man,  or  the  young  woman,  fourteen  or  fif- 
teen years  of  age,  coming  home  to  you  !  They  know  every- 
thing ;  they  are  ready  for  any  profession;  they  have  studied 
law ;  they  have  studied  chemistry,  philosophy,  history ;  they 
know  all  the  sciences;  they  are  well  fitted  for  the  service  of  this 
world  ;  and  you  ask  a  child  :  "  Do  you  know  your  duty  to  me — 
your  father  or  mother?  "  "  No  ;  I  never  heard  of  it."  "  Do  you 
know  that  you  are  bound  to  love  and  respect  me  ?  "  "  Who 
said  that?"  "  God  said  it."  "  I  never  heard  of  God  before."  I 
met  a  student  who  had  spent  a  great  part  of  his  life  in  an  Euro- 
pean college.  He  was  studying,  amongst  other  things,  geology 
— the  nature  of  the  earth,  the  history  of  the  earth's  foundation 
— and  that  young  man  assured  me  that  for  eighteen  months 
that  he  was  attending  the  school,  or  college,  every  day,  dur- 
ing the  eighteen  months  the  professor  there  was  lecturing,  he 
never  once  made  use  of  the  name  of  God.  There  will  follow 
from  that  education  an  infidel  mind,  and  an  infidel  heart ;  a 
ripened  intellect,  and  a  will  debased,  corrupted,  enslaved  to  the 


The  CatJiolic   View  of  Education.  497 

dictates  of  every  passion.  Now,  my  dear  friends,  a  child  so 
educated  will  come  home  in  a  few  months  filled  with  impurity 
and  iniquity.  For  that  teacher  who  does  not  teach  God,  by 
that  very  act  teaches  the  devil. 

Well,  the  next  great  system  of  education  is  that  which  is  pro- 
posed and  directed  by  so  many  who  are  not  Catholics.  They 
say:  "Oh  dear,  it  is  highly  improper  to  exclude  Almighty 
God."  They  said,  when  they  were  agitating  the  question  of 
education,  they  never  heard  of  such  a  thing  ;  it  isn't  in  the 
American  Constitution — God  bless  the  mark  !  Well,  they  build 
schools ;  they  get  a  large  grant  of  Government  money  for  these 
schools ;  they  open  these  schools  ;  and  they  ask  Catholic  parents 
to  send  their  children  to  them;  and  they  say:  "  Doti't  be 
afraid  ;  we  will  not  teach  your  children  infidelity.  We  have 
God  in  our  education.  We  have  the  Bible  laid  on  the  table — 
open — we  will  teach  your  child  to  read  it.  We  won't  teach  a 
word  that  the  Catholic  children  are  opposed  to — not  a  word 
against  their  religion  ;  but  we  will  go  in  to  educate  on  the  basis 
of  our  common  Christianity."  There  is  "common  Christian- 
ity " — the  favorite  theory  of  those  who  are  outside  the  Church. 
Let  us  analyze  it.  We  have  disposed  of  the  theory  of  "  Unsec- 
tarian  Education,"  or  teaching  without  God  ;  "  the  basis  of  our 
common  Christianity  "  is  the  next  big  word  we  have  to  deal 
with.  The  "  basis  of  our  common  Christianity  "  means  teach- 
ing only  as  much  as  the  Catholic  believes,  in  common  with  the 
Protestant ;  reducing  the  religious  education  of  the  Catholic 
child  to  a  few  elementary  truths  that  the  Protestant  and  Catho- 
lic believe  together.  Now,  if  you  will  remark,  how  much  is 
there  in  that  "common  Christianity,"  can  I  go  one  step  fur- 
ther? I  v/ill  ask  you  that  question — shall  I  go  one  step  further? 
I  defy  you,  my  Protestant  friends,  to  tell  me  one  single  point 
upon  which  the  Protestant  and  the  Catholic  are  combined,  ex- 
cept this  one  point — the  existence  of  God.  You  say  you  be- 
lieve in  Jesus  Christ.  I  say  you  do  not.  I  don't  mean  to  in- 
sult you,  my  friends  ;  but  I  want  to  prove  it  to  you.  There 
are  some  of  the  very  first  and  most  intelligent  of  Protestants, 
to-day,  who  deny  the  divinity  of  Jesus  Christ.  There  were 
some  books  written  some  time  ago — essays  and  reviews — they 
were  written  entirely  by  Anglican  clergymen,  learned  men,  and 
honest  men.     God  forbid  that  I  should  hurt  their  feelings ;  for 

32 


498  The  Catholic   View  of  Education. 

some  of  the  dearest  friends  that  I  have  in  the  world,  the  best 
and  most  intimate  friends,  are  Protestants  and  Englishmen  ; 
but  I  still  say  that  Protestants,  as  such,  are  not  bound  to  be- 
lieve in  the  divinity  of  Christ.  If  the  Protestant  says  he  does 
not  see  his  way  clearly  in  baptismal  regeneration,  and  every 
such  question,  he  discovers  they  are  only  "  opinions."  For 
Christ  has  said  in  the  Scriptures  :  "  The  Father  is  greater  than 
I  ;  "  and  some  one  will  say:  "  Now,  if  He  was  God,  He  would 
not  say  that.  My  '  opinion '  is  changed  on  that  subject.  My 
children  must  be  brought  up  in  the  widest  form  of  that  belief  in 
Christ."  This  is  the  belief  of  a  great  many  others.  But  I  ask 
you,  would  he  be  a  bad  Protestant  for  saying  that  ?  Would  the 
Protestant  Church  excommunicate  him  for  saying  he  did  not 
believe  in  baptism,  or  in  the  divinity  of  Christ  ?  By  no  means. 
There  are  clergymen  now  in  England,  preaching  the  Gospel, 
•who  don't  believe  one  bit  in  the  divinity  of  Christ.  If  a  Prot- 
•estant,  to-morrow,  wrote  a  letter  to  this  Herald  newspaper,  sta- 
ting that  he  "  did  not  believe  in  this  question  of  the  divinity  of 
Christ ;  it  is  not  so  clear  at  all ;  "  would  that  Protestant  lady  or 
gentleman  be  expelled  from  the  Church?  Would  they  be  de- 
nounced as  heretics,  and  declared  to  be  no  longer  members  of  the 
Protestant  Church?  Not  at  all.  Now,  my  Protestant  friends, 
you  must  keep  to  the  existence  of  God,  because  if  you  deny 
that,  you  are  atheists ;  but  the  moment  you  step  from  the  mere 
truth  of  the  existence  of  God — the  very  first  step  in  your  eccle- 
siastical doctrine — at  that  very  moment  your  faith  and  ours 
differ.  Your  reason  is  upon  a  different  foundation  from  ours. 
With  you  it  is  perfectly  immaterial ;  but  if  I  deny  the  existence 
of  Jesus  Christ,  if  I  deny  His  divinity,  here,  on  this  platform,  I 
would  go  down  speedily.  The  bishop,  this  night  before  to-mor- 
row, would  tell  me  I  was  no  longer  to  preach  in  his  diocese. 
There  is  not  an  altar  from  which  I  would  not  be  denounced  ; 
the  Catholics  would  be  warned  in  this  way;  "Don't  listen  to 
Father  Tom  Burke  ;  he  has  lost  the  faith." 

But,  even  admitting  a  few  elementary  truths,  such  as  the 
divinity  of  Christ,  the  atonement  of  our  Lord  upon  the  cross — 
the  all-sufficiency  of  that  sacrifice — admitting  what,  for  the 
most  part,  the  great  body  of  the  Protestants  admit  and  believe 
as  well  as  we  do— every  man  here  has  the  liveliest  belief  in  these 
doctrines — a  loving  and  devoted  belief  in  all  these  doctrines 


The  Catholic   Vieiv  of  Educaiton.  499 

which  our  Protestant  friends  are  in  so  much  trouble  about- 
after  all,  you  think  in  vain  to  unite  us  on  the  basis  of  our  "  com- 
mon Christianity."  Take  the  highest  form  of  Protestantism, 
as  far  as  it  goes  with  Catholic  principle,  even  in  the  mind  of 
the  little  child  ;  before  you  can  let  him  into  the  Protestant 
school,  on  a  religious  footing,  upon  a  footing  of  religious  equal- 
ity with  his  Protestant  companion,  on  the  basis  of  our  "  common 
Christianity" — that  Catholic  child  will  have  to  forget  confession, 
communion,  examination  of  conscience,  devotion  to  the  Blessed 
Virgin  and  to  the  saints,  the  sacrament  of  confirmation.  He 
will  have  to  forget  that  his  father  and  mother  were  united  in 
the  sacrament  of  matrimony.  He  will  have  to  forget  prayers 
for  the  dead.  If  his  old  grandmother,  when  she  was  dying, 
laid  her  hand  upon  his  head  and  said :  "  Son,  I  want  you  to 
pray  for  me  when  I  am  gone  ; "  he  will  have  to  forget  that 
before  he  can  go  in  with  the  Protestant  child  "  on  the  basis  of 
our  common  Christianity  ;  "  which  means  that  the  Protestant 
child  takes  his  own  ground,  and  says :  "  Here  is  my  ground  ;  I 
have  every  privilege,  every  enjoyment  of  my  Protestantism." 
Then  he  says  to  the  little  Catholic  child  :  "  Come  in  with  me  ; 
stand  on  this  platform  ;  but  you  will  have  to  come  down  ever 
so  many  flights  of  stairs  before  you  can  do  it."  Now,  my  dear 
friends,  I  need  not  tell  you  that,  whether  in  religious  matters 
or  not,  very  few  people  like  to  be  coming  down  stairs  to  meet 
their  friends  ;  you  would  much  rather  stand  on  your  own  land- 
ing, and,  if  your  friend  wants  you,  let  him  come  up  stairs  to 
you.  If  he  does  not  choose  to  come  up  to  you,  why  you  would 
say :  *'  You  can  stand  in  the  hall  ;  but  I  will  stay  where 
I  am." 

Now,  we  approach  the  great  question  of  the  Catholic  Church, 
her  ideas,  and  her  system  of  education.  The  Catholic  Church 
lays  down  a  few  principles  which  no  reasonable  man,  I  think, 
can  deny.  First  of  all,  the  Catholic  Church  says,  education 
must  take  in  every  element  or  means  of  intellectual  and  spiritual 
well-being.  Education  must  apply  itself  to  the  whole  soul  of 
man,  to  every  capacity  of  that  soul.  Education  must  bring  out 
and  develop  everything  and  every  power  that  is  in  that  soul ; 
not  giving  undue  prominence  to  one,  to  the  neglect  of  the 
other.  And  every  reasonable  man  must  say  that  this  is  the 
proper  idea  of  education,  which  means  to  bring  out.     What 


500  The  Catholic   View  of  Education, 

would  you  say  of  the  man  who  would  bring  up  his  child  in  this 
way,  accustoming  that  child  to  work  with  his  hands,  to  lift 
weights,  to  perform  every  exercise  with  his  hands — if  he  never 
allowed  that  child  to  walk  ?  Why,  you  would  say,  he  will  make 
a  strong-armed  cripple  of  him.  As,  in  like  manner,  if  that 
child's  hands  had  been  bandaged  and  he  was  obliged  to  exercise 
himself  with  his  feet  until  he  was  twenty  years  of  age,  he  would 
be  unable  to  lift  the  lightest  weight.  So  it  is  with  the  soul ; 
the  child,  in  order  to  be  educated,  must  be  altogether  educated 
— not  one  faculty  or  one  power  developed  at  the  expense  of  the 
others.     This  is  the  first  principle  of  Catholic  education. 

The  second  principle  of  Catholic  education  is  that  of  the  edu- 
cation of  the  heart,  of  the  affections,  and  of  the  will ;  it  is  as  im- 
portant, fully  as  important,  as  the  education  of  the  soul,  and 
more  important  than  the  education  of  the  intellect.  And  why? 
Because,  my  friends,  it  is  by  the  education  of  the  heart  and  of  the 
will  that  man's  moral  life  is  determined.  No  amount  of  knowl- 
edge that  you  can  give  to  man's  intellect  will  make  him  good 
or  honest,  will  make  him  pure,  will  make  him  obedient.  You 
have  no  guarantee  because  a  man  can  read  and  write  well,  be- 
cause he  is  ingenious,  that,  therefore,  he  will  make  a  good  hus- 
band, a  faithful,  loving  father,  or  an  honest  man.  Why,  my 
dear  friends,  here  in  America,  as  far  as  I  can  see,  if  you  have 
great  talents,  if  you  have  great  ability  for  business,  that  makes 
people  rather  shun  you,  and  be.on  their  guard  of  you  ;  for,  seeing 
so  much  intellect,  they  say  you  are  wanting  in  the  moral  qual- 
ities. They  mind  this  in  dealing  with  such  a  man  ;  for  they  say 
he  is  a  "  mighty  smart  man  ;  "  a  "  mighty  smart  man  "  in  intel- 
lect ;  an  educated  man  ;  a  man  that,  because  he  is  your  superior 
in  education,  in  intellect,  knows  how  to  get  at  the  blind  side,  or 
the  green  side  of  you.  What  does  this  prove?  Only  as  an  il- 
lustration. It  proves  a  great  principle,  namely,  that  the  edu- 
cation that  is  to  make  a  man  pure,  high-minded,  amiable,  faith- 
ful, and  loving — that  is  education  of  the  heart  rather  than  that 
of  the  mind.  The  Catholic  Church,  therefore,  says,  I  must 
apply  myself,  as  in  education,  first  to  the  will,  first  to  the  affec- 
tions. I  must  teach  the  mind.  I  must  bring  out  these  powers. 
I  must  stamp  this  will  and  soul  with  the  one  divine  resemblance 
that  has  been  fixed  into  them  ;  and,  at  the  same  time  that  1 
educate  and  give  with  the  one  hand   education  to  the  heart 


The  Catholic   View  of  Education.  501 

and  to  the  will,  with  the  other  I  will  pour  into  the  intellect 
every  form  of  knowledge,  so  as  to  make  an  intellectual  as  well 
as  a  holy  man. 

How  does  she  do  this — this  Church  of  God  ?  My  dear  friends, 
she  takes  the  child  before  that  child  has  come  to  the  use  of  rea- 
son ;  she  brings  the  child  or  the  infant  to  school ;  the  Sisters 
of  Mercy,  or  the  Sisters  of  Charity,  are  ready  to  receive  that 
child.  Reason  has  not  yet  dawned  upon  that  little  mind  ;  the 
child  has  not  yet  begun  to  understand  the  mystery  of  unlawful 
desires.  The  Church  of  God  takes  that  child  before  the  mys- 
tery of  sin — before  the  passions — are  developed  or  made  known 
to  it.  The  Sisters  begin  by  teaching  that  young  child,  before  it 
begins  to  reason,  the  things  of  heaven.  The  very  Sister  that 
ministers  that  education  to  the  infant,  in  her  religious  habit — iri 
his  consideration,  uniting  all  that  is  purest,  highest,  and  holiest 
with  all  that  is  tenderest  and  most  human — is  an  argument  in- 
sensibly made  upon  the  little  mind,  that  there  is  something 
better  for  men  to  live  for  than  the  things  of  earth.  The  image 
of  the  infant  Jesus  is  put  before  that  little  child ;  it  captivates 
the  young  sense,  and  teaches  that  little  creature  the  beauty  of 
heaven,  before  that  creature's  eyes  open  to  see  and  comprehend 
the  dangerous  beauty  of  the  world.  Reason  dawns  upon  that 
child  ;  but  that  child  has  already  turned  its  thoughts  upon  the 
Lord  of  heaven.  The  devil  comes  to  tempt  that  little  child 
with  the  opening  eye  of  passion,  with  the  opening  eye  of  reason  ; 
but  that  little  child  is  already  instructed  beforehand  in  the 
thoughts  and  in  the  things  of  Jesus  Christ.  The  Church,  as 
soon  as  that  child  comes  to  the  use  of  reason,  begins  to  teach 
him  the  first  lesson  of  man's  responsibility  to  God,  by  teaching 
that  child  how  to  prepare  for  his  first  Communion.  That  little 
child  is  taught,  as  soon  as  ever  it  becomes  able  to  think  for  itself, 
the  first  lessons — "  For  every  thought,  for  every  word  and  act, 
you  are  responsible  to  God  and  to  your  own  conscience."  That 
responsibility  is  brought  home  to  the  young  soul  by  the  prepara- 
tion for  Confession,  by  the  duty  of  self-examination — which  is 
one  of  the  first  duties  taught  in  the  Catholic  school.  And  when 
the  time  is  come,  when  the  intellect  is  more  perfect,  when  the 
heart,  more  grown,  is  capable  of  higher  and  more  magnificent 
ideas,  that  little  child  is  brought,  with  its  baptismal  innocence 
shining  upon   its  soul,  and  receives  the   body  of  the  Lord   in 


502  The  Catholic  View  of  Education. 

Holy  Communion.  Then,  during  the  subsequent  years,  for 
every  lesson  that  is  taught  of  human  knowledge,  there  is  also  a 
corresponding  lesson  of  divine  knowledge.  Every  new  idea 
that  is  brought  into  the  mind  is  accompanied  with  new  forms  of 
grace,  falling  upon  the  heart  and  will ;  for,  as  knowledge  is  the 
education  of  the  intellect,  grace  divine  is  the  education  of  the 
heart  of  man. 

This  is  the  Catholic  system  of  education.  This  is  the  system 
of  Catholic  education  that  sends  out,  in  a  few  years,  a  man 
able  to  contend  with  all  his  compeers,  in  every  rivalry  of  intel- 
lectual knowledge,  in  every  race  of  life ;  a  man  who  is  able,  by 
the  fact  of  his  education,  to  take  any  position  that  is  possible 
to  be  filled  by  any  of  them ;  a  man  that  is  fully  as  well  educated 
as  any  of  his  Protestant  brethren  in  the  land,  with  this  differ- 
ence— that  he  brings  forth  from  that  school  a  soul  that  has 
grown  in  purity,  a  maturity  of  intellect  without  forfeiting  a  sin- 
gle ray  of  the  purity  or  of  the  innocence  of  his  childhood. 

Now,  my  friends,  I  appeal  to  your  intelligence,  and  to  any 
person  who  is  not  a  Catholic  in  this  room — which  of  those  three 
systems,  do  you  think,  answers  most  fully  and  most  completely 
to  the  definition  of  the  word  "  Educo,''  to  educate,  to  bring 
out  ?  Which  of  these  three  systems  is  the  most  perfect  ?  I 
ask  you  as  parents,  as  men,  can  you  afford  to  give  your  chil- 
dren that  Godless  education  where  the  name  of  God  is  not 
mentioned?  Can  you,  Protestants  of  this  country,  ask  us,  your 
Catholic  brethren,  to  believe,  as  you  do,  that  which  is  but  a 
part  of  all  that  our  religion  teaches,  as  you  do  when  you  say  it 
is  an  advantage  for  our  children  to  be  brought  to  a  common 
level,  and  stand  together  with  yours  on  a  "  common  Christian 
basis  "  ?  It  is  too  common  (alas  !  that  we  should  be  addicted 
to  it).  We  know  and  believe  Christ,  our  Lord,  to  be  present 
on  His  altar;  but  you  cannot  recognize  this  truth — you,  so  in- 
tellectual, so  high-minded,  so  refined.  You  are  willing  to  em- 
brace that  gladly,  if  you  only  could  believe  that  He  is  there. 
But  you  do  not  believe  it.  And,  as  you  believe  it  not,  do  you 
mean  to  tell  me  that  you  are  able,  that  you  will  educate  and  fit 
a  man  to  receive  his  God,  and  receive  Him  frequently  ?  Do  you 
believe  it  ?     No;  certainly  not. 

Now,  I  ask  you,  my  Protestant  friends,  have  you  any  right  to 
educate  our  children  as  if  they  believed  it  not  .'^     Have  you  any 


The  Catholic   View  of  Education.  503 

right,  I  ask  you,  to  give  that  child  such  an  education  as  to 
make  him  a  very  good  Protestant,  but  a  very  bad  Catholic  ?  A 
very  bad  Catholic  is  one  who  doesn't  prepare  for  confession  by 
an  examination  of  conscience ;  and  a  very  good  Protestant  who 
never  thinks  of  one  or  the  other.  He  is  a  very  bad  Catholic 
who  doesn't  hear  his  Sunday's  Mass,  and  hear  it  attentively  and 
worthily;  but  he  would  make  a  very  good  Protestant  without 
ever  crossing  the  threshold  of  a  church  at  all.  A  very  bad 
Catholic  he  is  who  has  hardly  any  love,  affection,  or  veneration 
for  the  Mother  of  Jesus  Christ — the  woman  who  said  :  "  Hence- 
forth all  generations  shall  call  me  blessed."  And  he  would  be 
a  very  bad  Protestant  if  he  had  any  principle  of  devotion  to 
the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary.  So  you  see  the  essential  differ- 
ence. 

The  Catholic  Church  says  to  the  Protestant  children  :  "  If 
you  will  come,  such  as  I  have  I  give  to  you.  I  have  sacra- 
ments; I  have  grace;  I  have  remission  of  sin;  I  have  sacra- 
mental power;  I  have  examples  in  millions  of  saints  and  phi- 
losophers to  encourage  and  develop  all  that  is  highest,  holiest, 
and  purest.  And  with  all  these  in  my  hand,  I  offer  it  to  you — 
to  you,  Protestant  children  ;  and  if  you  do  not  accept  it,  I  will 
not  force  it  upon  you  ;  I  will  educate  your  children  in  simple 
obedience."  "  But,"  says  the  Protestant,  "  what  right  have  you 
to  force  your  mysterious  religion  upon  us  ?  "  If  a  man  had  a 
dinner  of  roast  beef  and  a  magnificent  turkey  set  out  before 
him  ;  and  another  man,  sitting  near  him,  had  but  two  salt 
herrings — if  the  man  with  the  roast  beef  and  the  fine  dinner 
should  say  to  the  other — "  Come  over  and  sit  with  me;  let  us 
eat  together  and  be  neighborly."  "  No,"  says  the  other. 
"  Very  well,"  says  the  first ;  "  I  will  not  press  you."  But  if  the 
man  with  the  two  salt  herrings  should  say  :  "  Leave  your  beef 
and  turkey  and  eat  a  herring  with  me,"  it  would  seem  to  me  to 
be  pretty  much  the  same  as  the  case  between  the  Catholic  and 
Protestant.  They  tell  us,  "  It  is  bad — actually  bad  in  itself — for 
you  Catholics  to  send  missionaries  out  to  build  schools  for  edu- 
cation, when  you  know  well  we  have  the  means  in  our  schools 
to  impart  it."  The  Catholic  says  :  "  It  is  very  hard  to  be  com- 
pelled to  contribute  to  their  support  without  any  benefit ;  but  I 
believe  we  must  send  our  children  to  our  own  schools,  because 
we  have  things  in  our  schools  that  we  believe  to  be  absolutely 


504  The  Catholic   View  of  Education. 

necessary  for  ourselves  and  our  children."  To  be  sure,  I  know 
very  well  it  is  a  hard  thing.  Both  here  and  in  Ireland  we  have 
to  bear  the  common  burden  of  the  State  education  ;  which  is  a 
hard  thing  to  bear,  especially  when  we  cannot  avail  ourselves  of 
it.  It  is  something  hard  on  Catholic  parents,  not  only  in  Amer- 
ica, but  in  the  old  land — it  is  too  bad  that  they  cannot  send  their 
children  to  the  Queen's  College,  or  to  the  model  school :  as,  in- 
deed, I  remember  a  man  coming  into  our  house  when  I  was  be- 
ing educated  ;  and  he  said  to  my  mother  :  "  A  great  fool  you 
are,  paying  twelve  pounds  a  year  for  a  classical  education  for 
your  boy,  when,  if  you  send  him  to  the  Queen's  College,  he 
will  be  educated  for  nothing ;  and  if  he  gets  a  prize,  he  will 
bring  you  home  twenty  pounds."  My  mother  answered  :  "  He 
will  bring  me  home  twenty  pounds  !  Not  for  ten  thousand 
pounds  will  I  allow  him  to  cross  the  threshold  of  their  Queen's 
College ;  for  the  lessons  that  I  want  my  child  to  be  taught," 
said  she,  "  are,  that  he  shall  know  his  duty  to  God,  and  his  duty 
to  me  ;  and  there  he  won't  be  taught  either  one  or  the  other." 
I  say  again,  it  is  a  hard  thing  to  have  your  well-earned  money 
wrung  from  you  for  the  building  up  of  State  schools  ;  and 
when  the  priest  is  at  you,  hammer-and-tongs,  about  his  schools. 
But,  my  friends,  when  you  consider  all  that  the  Catholic  child 
cannot  get  outside  the  Catholic  school,  all  that  that  Catholic 
child  requires,  which  the  Eternal  God  has  said,  and  the 
Church  has  said,  he  must  get — when  you  consider  all  this,  all 
you  can  say  is,  that  you  give  but  little,  much  as  you  give,  com- 
pared with  what  you  receive,  when  you  receive  from  the  hands 
of  the  priest,  the  monk,  or  the  nun,  a  boy  not  ashamed  nor 
afraid  of  his  religion  ;  not  ashamed  of  his  parents,  not  ashamed 
of  his  duties  ;  and  a  girl  that  comes  home  to  you  captivated 
with  the  beauty  of  the  Mother  of  God,  and  reflecting  that 
beauty  in  the  purity  of  her  own  angelic  soul. 

What  shall  be  the  future  of  this  question  in  America?  I 
cannot  help  in  everything  asking  myself  "  What  is  to  become 
of  it  ?  "  At  home  in  Ireland,  somehow  or  other — because  it  was 
an  old  country,  perhaps — we  were  constantly  "  ochoning,"  cry- 
ing over  the  glories  that  are  gone,  talking  about  the  persecutions 
that  we  suffered  hundreds  of  years  ago,  and  talking  about  Brian 
Boroihme.  We  seldom  or  never  started  the  question,  "  What 
is  in  store  for  old  Ireland  for  the  time  to  come  ?  "     But  since  I 


The  Catholic  View  of  Education.  505 

came  to  America  I  look  upon  everything  as  yet  in  its  infancy, 
every  great  question  yet  unsolved  in  these  infant  States,  every 
great  interest  almost  untouched ;  and  I  am  constantly  asking 
myself,  "  What  is  the  future  of  this  thing  or  that  thing?"  In 
what  way  will  commercial  interests  develop  themselves?  What 
is  the  religion  of  x'\merica  to  be?  What  is  the  political  action 
of  America  to  be  ?  And,  as  I  believe  in  my  soul,  that  the  future 
of  America  will  be  the  future  of  a  glorious,  united,  and  en- 
lightened Catholicity,  so  I  believe  in  my  soul  that  God  has 
reserved  for  this  mighty  country  the  blessing  of  a  pure,  univer- 
sal, and  Catholic  education.  I  cannot  believe  that  the  American 
mind  will  ever  consent  to  banish  God  from  its  schools  and  from 
its  teachings.  I  cannot  believe  that  the  American  intelligence 
will  refuse  to  arrive  at  the  wise  conclusion,  that  the  education 
of  the  heart  by  grace  is  as  necessary  as  the  education  of 
the  intellect  by  knowledge.  And  in  the  day  that  America 
arrives  at  that  conclusion — in  that  day  America  will  open  her 
schools  to  educate,  throughout  the  land— in  all  the  sacraments 
for  God's  service,  all  the  truth  of  Catholic  teaching,  acts  of  de- 
votion to  the  Virgin  Mother  and  the  saints,  all  that  cheers  and 
delights  the  infant,  or  brings  grace  upon  the  young  heart — in 
that  day  America  will  open  her  schools  in  order  that  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  may  take  possession  of  them,  to  sanctify  them  by 
His  strength,  purifying  them  to  enable  the  future  action  of  the 
most  enlightened  people  to  be  the  very  perfection  of  Christian- 
ity, to  uphold  through  all  nations — wherever  the  name  of  an 
American  shall  be  heard — the  very  idea  of  right  and  of  justice, 
of  legislation  for  God  and  for  His  eternal  law. 


"DRUNKENNESS  THE  WORST  DE- 
GRADATION-TEMPERANCE THE 
GREATEST    BLESSING    OF    MAN." 


[Delivered  before  the  Total  Abstinence  Union  of  New  Jersey,  in  Library  Hall, 
Elizabeth,  on  Monday  Evening,  September  17,  1872.] 

ONSIDERING  the  purpose  for  which  we  have  come 
together,  my  friends,  I  hope  you  will  not  consider  it 
out  of  place  if  I  put  a  little  water  in  the  glass.  You 
are  temperance  men.  My  friends,  I  thank  you  for  the 
reception  which  you  have  given  me  ;  and  I  am  impressed  with 
the  solemnity  of  the  occasion  which  brings  us  together  this 
evening.  As  men,  mostly,  of  one  race — and  all  of  one  faith — 
it  is,  indeed,  a  most  solemn  occasion,  when  such  men  come  to- 
gether to  discuss  the  greatest  evil  of  the  age — which  is  drunken- 
ness— and  the  greatest  blessing  of  the  age — which  is  temperance. 
If  I  were  addressing  men  of  the  world  only,  I  should  only  use 
arguments  suited  to  them.  I  should  tell  them  of  the  temporal 
prosperity  and  blessings  which  follow  from  temperance.  If  I 
were  addressing  Catholics  only,  I  might  confine  myself  to  an 
entirely  ecclesiastical  and  religious  view  of  this  great  question. 
But  I  do  not  wish  to  address  you  here  to-night  exclusively  as 
men  of  the  world  or  as  Catholics.  I  have  the  high  honor  to  be 
an  Irish  Catholic  priest ;  and  I  have  the  equally  high  honor  to 
address  an  audience  mostly  made  up  of  men  of  Irish  name  and 
of  Irish  birth.  And  when  an  Irish  Catholic  priest  meets  his 
fellow-countrymen,  he  has  to  appeal,  first  of  all,  to  their  intel- 
ligence— for  God  has  blessed  the  Irish  race  with  the  gift  of  in- 
tellect. He  has,  secondly,  to  address  their  faith,  for  God  has 
blessed  this  Irish  race  with  the  gift  of  the  one  true,  holy  Catho- 
lic faith.  He  has,  thirdly,  to  address  the  heart  as  well  as  the 
head  ;  because  the  Omnipotent  God  has  given  to  the  Irish  people 


Drunkenness  the  worst  Degradation  of  Man.  507 

not  only  the  gift  of  intelligence — crowned  with  the  gift  of  faith 
— but  he  has  also  given  to  them  tender  affections,  strong  and 
pure  affections,  loving  hearts ;  and  he  would  be  a  fruitless 
Irishman,  and  a  fruitless  priest,  who,  in  addressing  his  fellow- 
men,  would  forget  to  appeal  to  their  hearts,  as  well  as  their  heads. 

Coming,  therefore,  before  you  this  evening,  dear  friends,  to 
speak  to  you  on  this  great  and  solemn  subject  of  temperance,  I 
ask  you  to  consider  it,  first,  by  the  light  of  reason  ;  and  the  ap- 
peal is  to  your  intelligence  :  secondly,  by  the  light  of  revela- 
tion ;  and  the  appeal  is  to  your  faith,  as  Catholics  ;  and  thirdly, 
by  the  light  of  your  own  experience  ;  and  the  appeal  is  to  your 
hearts,  as  true  Irishmen,  and  true  men. 

First  of  all,  then,  let  me  consider  this  great  question  of  tem- 
perance by  the  light  of  reason  ;  and  what  do  I  find?  I  find — in 
reviewing  the  mighty  creation  of  the  Almighty  God,  and  fixing 
the  determined  position  in  the  order  of  nature  given  to  every 
creature  which  God  has  made — that  some  He  created  in  the  high 
heaven,  pure  spirits,  like  Himself;  and  they  are  the  blessed 
angels  ;  some  He  created  upon  the  earth,  without  soul,  without 
intelligence,  without  a  spirit  at  all,  but  only  an  animal  existence, 
animal  bodies,  animal  propensities,  and  desires,  and  instincts  ; 
and  these  are  the  beasts  of  the  field,  and  the  birds  of  the  air, 
that  surround  us. 

Now,  between  these  two  great  orders  of  beings — the  earthly, 
with  its  absence  of  intelligence,  its  absence  of  soul — and  the 
heavenly — purely  spiritual,  without  the  slightest  admixture  of 
the  material  existence — between  these  two  great  orders  there 
lies  a  mighty  chasm — an  abyss — the  gulf  that  divides  spirit 
from  matter.  In  the  midst  of  that  chasm  stands  man.  God 
created  him  a  mixture  of  two  natures.  God  gave  him,  in  his 
body — in  his  bodily  passions  and  appetites  and  desires — the 
mere  nature  of  a  brute ;  nothing  more.  And  if  man  had  no 
soul,  then  he  would  be  a  brute  beast,  like  to  the  other  beasts 
upon  the  earth.  Everything  that  regards  the  body  is  animal — 
"of  the  earth,  earthly."  The  senses  that  we  enjoy  are  all  ani- 
mal ;  we  share  them  in  connection  with  the  beasts  of  the  field. 
We  see  with  our  eyes ;  so  do  the  stag  in  the  forest,  the  buffalo 
on  the  prairie,  the  eagle  on  the  wing.  We  eat  and  drink ;  so 
do  the  beasts.  We  walk,  and  take  exercise  ;  so  do  they.  We 
clothe  ourselves ;  nature  has  clothed  them.     Thus  we  see  that 


5o8  Drunkenness  the  worst  Degradation — ■ 

this  body  of  ours,  this  material  flesh,  with  its  eyes,  its  sense  of 
taste,  its  sense  of  hearing,  all  its  powers,  is  merely  the  animal 
or  the  brute  in  man.  But  in  that  body — so  base,  so  vile,  so 
animalesque — the  Almighty  God  has  enshrined  a  spirit  the  very 
image  of  Himself — the  very  reflection  of  His  divine  perfection 
— as  pure  a  spirit  as  God  is  spirit — pure  as  the  angels  of  God 
are  spirit.  In  this  body  of  man  He  has  enshrined  a  soul  gifted 
with  the  power  of  knowledge ;  and  God  is  knowledge ;  gifted 
with  the  power  of  love ;  and  God  is  love ;  gifted  with  freedom 
of  will ;  and  God  is  eternal  and  essential  freedom.  And  in  this 
lies  the  grand  nobility  of  man — the  magnificent  place  he  fills 
in  the  creation  of  God — that  he  stands  between  heaven  and 
earth,  sharing  the  nature  of  both  ;  taking  from  the  slime  of  the 
earth  the  body  in  which  he  lives*  taking  from  the  very 
mouth  of  God  the  spirit  that  was  breathed  into  him  in  his  glo- 
rious, angelic,  immortal  soul. 

Let  me  fix  this  in  your  minds.  There  was  a  great  chasm  of 
vacuum  in  the  creation  of  God.  God,  in  the  beginning  of  His 
ways,  made  a  heaven,  in  which  He  dwells,  and  the  angels  who 
surround  Him.  God,  then,  moved  out,  as  it  were,  unto  the  very 
threshold  of  that  heaven,  and  saw  around  him  the  immensity  of 
space  in  chaos  and  confusion  ;  and  He  said  :  "  I  will  create  a 
material  world."  And  He  made  the  world  in  which  we  dwell. 
Five  days  did  He  labor.  He  created  the  hills  and  mountains, 
covered  with  the  verdure  and  beauty  which  adorn  them.  He 
created  the  earth  and  the  sea,  the  skies  and  the  atmosphere. 
He  created  the  fishes  that  swim  in  the  ocean's  depths,  the  brutes 
that  browse  in  the  field,  the  birds  that  fly,  the  fowls  that  wing 
the  healthy  air.  He  filled  all  creation  with  life.  And  yet,  for 
five  days  there  was  an  immense  distance  between  God  and  His 
own  work — the  distance  that  lay  between  pure  spirit  and  mere 
material  existence.  To  fill  that  gap,  to  connect  these  two, 
God  created  a  being  who  was  to  be  not  altogether  material,  but 
in  whom  spirit  from  heaven  and  matter  from  the  earth  were  to 
meet,  and  embrace;  and  that  being  is  man.  In  him  two  things 
blend — the  nature  of  the  body  and  the  nature  of  the  soul — as 
distinct  from  one  another  as  night  is  from  day.  He  is  the  golden 
link  which  binds  together  the  heaven,  where  God  and  His 
angels  dwell,  and  the  earth,  which  is  the  natural  home  of  only 
material  and  animal  beings. 


Temperance  the  greatest  Blessing  of  Man.  509 

Such   is  man.     Now,  the  philosopher — even  guided  by  the 
light  of  the  old  pagan  knowledge,  without  a  single  ray  of  divine 
revelation,  will  tell  you   that  the  whole  nobility  of  man — the 
perfection  of  man — lies,  not  in  the  body,  which  he  got  from  the 
earth,  nor  in  the  bodily  senses,  which  are  made  up  of  the  slime 
— but  in  the  soul — the  spiritual  being  which  is  within  him  ;  that 
wherever  man  is  to   rise — even  one  inch — towards  the  perfec- 
tion of  his  being,  that  elevation  must  come  to  him  through  his 
soul.     Why?     It  stands  to  reason,  if  God  gave  me  a  principle 
of  immortal  life — a  principle  of  knowledge,  of  love,  and  of  free- 
dom within  me ;  if,  morever,  He  tied  down — chained  down — ■ 
that  principle  to  a  mere  earthly,  material  body,  destined  to  walk 
the  earth,  to  cling  to  this  earth,  to  die  upon  this  earth,  and  to 
go  down  to  a  grave  and  be  mingled  with  itself  once  more — it 
follows  from  this  twofold  nature  of  man  that  whenever  we  look 
up  at  all,  in  the  order  of  nature  or  grace,  the  upward  glance  must 
be  from  the  soul.     The  nobility  of  my  being  lies  in  the  develop- 
ment, in  the  strengthening,  of  the  knowledge,  the  love,  and  the 
freedom  of  my  immortal  spirit  within  me.     Would  you  say  that 
that  man  was  a  noble  creature  of  his  kind  who  merely  devel- 
oped the  muscles,  and  the  nerves,  and  the  powers  of  his  body ; 
who  became  a  strong  man,  developed  in  every  material  element 
of  his  being ;  but  whose  soul  was  left  without  a  single  ray  of 
thought,  without  a  single  illumination  of  reason,  without  a  single 
noble  affection  of  his  heart,  without  a  single  generous  impulse 
of  his  soul  ?     Nay,  more  ;  let  us  conceive  a  man — a  slave — una- 
ble to  exercise  his  freedom,  unable  to  assert  himself,  unable  to 
speak  a  language  which  will  reflect  one  high  idea  of  his  mind — 
only  developed  in  his  body  ;  what  would  you  say  of  such  a  man  ? 
You  would  say  he  was  a  powerful  brute,  not  a  man.     We  some- 
times meet  idiots — creatures  altogether  deprived  of  their  reason, 
and  the  doctors  will  tell  you  that  in  proportion   as  they  are  de- 
prived of  reason,  in  the  same  proportion  they  become  healthy, 
have  huge  appetites,  and  often  get  to  be  very  strong.     Why,  in 
the  lunatic  asylums,  they  become  so  powerful  and  dangerous 
that  they  have  to  be  bound  down  with  chains,  and  the  keepers 
are  afraid  of  them.     They  become  mere  brutes,  and  instead  of 
speaking  like  men  they  jabber  like  monkeys  ;  no  human  feeling, 
no  humanity  about  them  ;  only  strong  animals,  going  about  on 
two  feet  instead  of  four — only  strong  animals  without  tails. 


510  Drunkenness  the  worst  Degradation — 

Such  is  man.  All  that  is  noble  within  him — all  that  is  capa- 
ble of  perfection  in  him — lies  in  the  soul.  The  more  he  knows, 
the  clearer  and  better  his  thoughts  are ;  the  more  powerfully  he 
is  able  to  think  ;  the  more  pure  his  life  ;  the  more  steadfast  his 
word  ;  the  more  honorable  his  principles  ;  the  freer  he  is  from 
every  form  of  slavery,  whether  it  be  the  slavery  of  earth  or  of 
hell — the  more  perfect  the  man  becomes.  Thus  the  light  of 
reason  teaches.  Now,  my  friends,  the  design  of  God  in  creating 
all  things  is,  that  every  creature  that  God  makes  should  grow 
to  the  natural  perfection  of  his  being.  The  design  of  the  devil 
is  to  hinder  that  growth  in  man,  to  destroy  the  soul,  to  destroy, 
as  far  as  he  can,  his  natural  powers — to  destroy  his  supernat- 
ural powers — to  take  away  from  him  that  glorious  image  of 
knowledge,  love,  and  freedom,  with  which  God  has  stamped 
his  soul ;  to  drag  man  down,  as  far  as  he  can,  to  the  mere  con- 
dition of  the  brute.  That  is  the  design  of  the  devil  as  distinct- 
ly opposed  to  that  of  God  ;  and  I  put  it  on  this  ground  because 
I  am  here  to  speak  as  a  Catholic  priest ;  and  when  I  appeal  to 
your  intelligence,  I  appeal  to  an  intelligence  formed  not  only 
by  natural  talent,  but  informed  by  the  knowledge  of  divine 
faith.  I  say  that  wherever  there  is  a  sin  in  man  there  is  degra- 
dation. Sin  is  in  the  body ;  sin  operates  through  the  body  ; 
through  the  body  the  soul  is  vitiated  and  destroyed.  Wherever 
there  is  sin  in  man,  that  sin  pulls  him  down  from  the  pedestal 
where  God  placed  him. 

Take  whatever  sin  you  like  in  the  catalogue  of  sins,  and  I 
will  prove  to  you  that  it  is  a  degradation  of  man.  The  man 
that  is  seeking  a  place — the  ambitious  man — is  a  degraded  man. 
Why?  Because  he  is  seeking  for  some  place  here  on  this  earth _ 
which  he  can  only  enjoy  for  a  few  years ;  going  about  asking 
people  to  give  him  this  place — praying  for  it  and  working  for  it, 
as  if  Almighty  God  had  created  him  for  the  sole  purpose  of  fill- 
ing that  place ;  as  if  Almighty  God  intended  man,  whom  He 
created  for  eternity,  to  expend  all  his  energies  upon  some 
miserable  distinction  that  must  only  last  him  for  a  ^&\^  days. 
And  if  this  is  so  of  the  spiritual  vice  of  pride  and  ambition, 
what  shall  I  say  to  you,  my  friends,  even  as  though  I  were  a 
pagan  talking  to  pagans,  of  the  one  vice  that  utterly  destroys 
in  man  every  vestige  of  that  immortal  and  spiritual  being  that 
God  created   in  his  soul — the  one  vice  that  completely  annihi- 


Temperance  the  greatest  Blessing  of  Man.  511 

lates  and  extinguishes  the  light  of  reason ;  which  completely 
destroys,  for  the  time,  every  emotion  of  life ;  and  that  so  robs 
man  of  his  freedom  as  to  make  him  not  only  a  slave  but  a  help- 
less slave  ?  That  vice  is  the  vice  of  drink,  or  drunkenness.  It 
destroys  the  natural  nobility  and  perfection,  aye,  and  the  very 
nature  of  man.  It  is  a  sin  not  only  against  God,  but  against 
man  ;  not  only  against  grace,  but  against  nature  ;  not  only 
against  the  divinity  which  ought  to  be  in  us,  but  against  the 
very  humanity  that  is  in  us.  In  what  consists  our  human 
nature  ?  It  consists  in  our  power  of  thinking,  of  living,  and  of 
acting  freely.  Take  away  this  from  a  man,  and  I  defy  you  to 
tell  me  in  what  a  vestige  of'  human  nature  remains  in  him. 
Not  a  vestige  remains  of  that  which  makes  him  man  ;  for  a  man 
is  made  by  soul  as  well  as  body.  Take  away  the  soul  and  you 
have  destroyed  his  humanity.  For  instance,  if  you  saw  a  dead 
body  lying  there  before  you,  stiff,  cold,  and  stark,  you  would 
not  say  it  was  a  man.  You  would  say  it  was  the  remains  of  a 
man.  They  will  not  write  on  my  grave — "  Here  lies  Father 
Tom  Burke  ; "  but,  in  all  probability,  they  will  write — "  Pray 
for  the  soul  of  Thomas  Burke,  whose  remains  lie  here."  The 
moment  you  take  away  the  soul,  nothing  is  left  but  the  remains 
of  a  man.  And  what  does  the  remains  of  a  man  mean?  A 
mass  of  putrefying,  rotten  earth ;  a  mass  of  rottenness.  That 
is  the  meaning  of  "  the  remains  of  a  man."  Why  are  we  so 
anxious  to  bury  our  friends  as  soon  as  the  breath  is  out  of  them  ? 
Because  we  cannot  keep  them.  "  The  remains  of  a  man  "  is  a 
very  noisome  business.  You  very  soon  have  to  put  your 
fingers  up  to  your  nose  and  say :  "  We  loved  him  dearly 
as  long  as  he  was  with  us ;  but  we  love  him  no  longer;  for  the 
soul  has  gone." 

Now,  every  sin  that  the  devil  can  tempt  us  to  commit — even 
though  we  may  do  it,  or  fall  into  it — no  matter  what  it  is,  it  still 
leaves  us  men.  The  proud  man,  with  all  his  pride,  is  a  man  still, 
and  knows  what  he  is  doing.  The  revengeful  man  may  swear  that 
he  will  have  the  heart's  blood  of  the  man  who  has  insulted  him  ; 
he  still  knows  what  he  is  about,  even  when  he  stands  at  night,  with 
the  dirk  or  the  gun  in  his  hand,  watching  for  his  victim ; — he  is 
still  a  man.  The  impure  man,  ravening  for  his  impurity-— the 
vilest  specimen  of  a  man — is  still  a  man,  and  knows  what  he  is 
doing.     There  is  only  one  sinner  through  whom  the  devil  passes 


512  Drunkenness  the  worst  Degradation — 

with  so  much  power  that  he  leaves  him  only  the  remains  of  a 
man.  A  man  goes  into  the  saloon  or  store ;  he  drinks  one  glass 
— that  only  makes  him  good-natured  ;  he  drinks  another  glass — 
that  makes  him  loving — ready  to  kiss  everybody ;  he  drinks  a 
third  glass — that  makes  him  cross ;  he  drinks  a  fourth  glass — 
then  he  begins  to  lisp,  and  people  don't  know  what  he  is  talk- 
ing about ;  they  do  not  know  whether  he  is  cursing  or  blessing ; 
he  drinks  a  fifth,  and  a  sixth  glass,  and  falls  to  the  ground — the 
remains  of  a  man.  Will  any  man  amongst  us  dare  to  call  that 
infamous  wretch  a  man  ? 

A  man  means  the  image  of  God.  Is  there  a  man  amongst 
you  having  the  hardihood  to  blaspheme  the  eternal  and  Al- 
mighty God,  by  saying  that  that  speechless,  senseless,  unrea- 
soning, unloving,  lifeless  brute  there  is  the  image  of  God?  Stand 
over  him,  my  friends,  and  look  at  him  as  he  lies  there.  Speak  to 
him.  You  might  as  well  speak  to  a  corpse.  He  does  not  under- 
stand you.  Reason  with  him.  You  might  as  well  reason  with 
that  table.  Ask  him  to  look  at  you.  There  is  no  light  in  his  eyes. 
Did  you  ever  see  a  man  stupidly  drunk?  Did  you  ever  look  into 
his  eyes  ?  I  remember,  when  I  was  a  little  boy,  seeing,  at  home,  in 
the  kitchen,  in  Galway,  hanging  up  on  a  hook  behind  the  kitchen 
door  a  hake,  that  my  mother  had  bought  the  day  before.  I  was 
curious  enough  to  go  up  and  look  at  its  eyes.  It  had  been  dead 
about  twelve  hours.  That  same  day  I  saw  a  man  drunk,  lying 
in  the  gutter.  Boy  as  I  was,  I  said  to  myself,  "the  hake's  eye 
again  !  "  Let  his  wife  come  there  and  kneel  at  his  side ;  he 
does  not  know  her ;  he  is  unable  to  speak  to  her.  Lift  him  up 
on  his  feet,  then  let  go  your  hands,  and  down  he  falls  again. 
May  I  ask  you — is  he  a  man  ?  Why,  if  he  was  a  man  he  could 
speak,  he  could  reason  with  you  ;  he  could  see  you  and  know 
you  if  you  were  there.  How  can  you  call  this  creature  a 
man?  He  has  lost  the  power  of  speech,  of  discerning,  of  rea- 
soning, of  loving,  of  moving.  No,  my  friends,  he  is  only  the  re- 
mains of  a  man  ;  with  this  difference  between  him  and  a  corpse  : 
a  corpse  is  killed  by  the  angel  of  God,  commissioned  to  do 
God's  sentence ;  but  this  man  has  killed  himself,  by  calling  in 
the  devil  to  help  him  in  his  infamous  suicide.  And,  remember, 
that  we  may  insult  the  Almighty  God  not  only  as  the  author 
of  our  redemption  and  of  our  sanctification,  but  we  may  also 
insult  Him  as  the  author  of  our  nature.     I  do  not  speak  to  you 


Temperance  the  greatest  Blessing  of  Man.  5 1 3 

now  as  Catholics  and  as  Christians,  but  only  as  men  I  say  now 
nothing  more  than  this,  that  when  God  made  us,  He  gave  us 
soul  and  body  together,  in  all  the  activity  of  their  powers.  The 
man  that  annihilates  his  soul  for  a  single  instant,  commits  an 
outrage  against  the  God  that  has  made  him,  as  the  author  of  his 
nature. 

I  might  dwell  upon  this  subject.  I  might  show  you  that  as 
everything  in  grace  is  founded  in  nature,  so  there  is  no  evil  so 
great  as  that  which  destroys  even  for  a  time  the  integrity  of  our 
nature  ;  because  it  destroys  the  possibility  of  grace.  Every 
other  sinner  might  cry  out  to  God  and  get  grace,  get  forgive- 
ness, get  redemption.  The  drunkard  alone  is  incapable  of  send- 
ing forth  that  cry.  We  have  the  dreadful  truth  before  us — that 
if  the  Son  of  God  came  down  from  heaven  and  stood  over  the 
drunkard,  omnipotent  as  He  is,  He  could  do  nothing  for  him. 
I  have  had  the  misfortune  to  stand  over  such  a  man  dying  in 
his  fit  of  drunkenness.  I  have  had  the  misfortune,  as  a  priest, 
to  be  called  to  his  side;  and  I  could  only  say  to  the  heart- 
broken woman  that  was  there — the  very  picture  of  despair,  with 
her  starving  children  around  her — "  My  child,  I  can  do  nothing 
for  you!"  God  Himself  can  do  nothing  for  that  man  ;  because 
he  is  only  the  remains  of  a  man. 

Now,  I  ask  you,  can  there  be  any  degradation  greater  than 
this?  Remember,  when  a  man  falls  from  his  manhood,  he  has 
nothing  to  fall  to  except  to  brutality.  In  the  steps  of  creation 
you  mount  from  the  rock  to  the  tree,  from  the  tree  to  the 
brute,  from  the  brute  to  the  man,  from  the  man  to  the  angel.. 
If  a  man  makes  a  step  upwards,  it  must  be  towards  the  angel. 
If  a  man,  on  the  other  hand,  falls  from  his  humanity,  the  only 
level  he  can  find  is  that  of  the  brute.  And  this  is  the  meaning 
of  the  words  of  Scripture  :  "  Man,  when  he  was  in  honor,  lost 
his  intellect ;  he  has  been  compared  to  the  senseless  brutes,  and 
made  like  to  them." 

And  yet,  unfortunately,  he  falls  below  the  level  of  the  brute. 
I  would  not  insult  one  of  God's  creatures  by  comparing  them 
to  a  drunken  man.  What  right  have  we?  We  have  a  right  to 
take  them  to  the  slaughter-house,  and  to  put  them  to  death  ; 
but  no  right  to  insult  them,  or  to  degrade  in  any  degree  the 
humblest  creature  that  crawls  upon  the  earth.  I  would  not  in- 
sult any  such  by  comparing  them  to  a  drunken  man»    Why  ? 


514  Drunkenness  the  worst  Degradation — 

Because  that  poor  creature,  or  four-footed  dumb  beast,  you  can 
lead  into  the  slauj^hter-house,  or  put  him  into  the  shafts  to  draw 
us  around,  or  put  him  into  our  service  any  time  of  the  day  or 
night;  and  you  find  him  such  as  Almighty  God  made  him,  with 
every  faculty  that  God  has  given  him.  But  the  drunkard  is  not 
as  Almighty  God  made  him  ;  therefore,  not  equal  to  the  brute. 
Such  a  man  has  ceased  to  be  a  man,  and  falls  below  and  be- 
neath the  level  of  the  brute.  The  brute  can  give  forth  signs  of 
pleasure,  sorrow,  or  pain  ;  the  drunkard  cannot.  The  brute  can 
give  intelligent  signs,  by  the  law  of  nature,  to  his  fellow-beasts 
in  the  field ;  the  drunken  man  cannot  converse  with  his  fellow- 
man.  The  brute  can  walk  and  labor ;  the  drunken  man  cannot 
do  one  or  the  other.  How  dare  any  one  of  us  compare  him  to 
the  brute?  No!  there  is  only  one  creature  of  God  to  whom 
we  can  compare  him.  And  that  creature  of  God  was  seated 
upon  a  high  throne  in  heaven,  and  now  lies  in  the  depths  of 
hell.     He  is  the  devil. 

Thus,  by  the  light  of  reason  ;  now,  by  the  light  of  revelation, 
I  have  to  appeal  to  you  as  Christian  people  through  what  God 
has  revealed  to  His  people  in  the  inspiration  of  the  Scriptures. 
In  the  record  of  God's  dealings  with  men  what  do  I  find,  my 
friends  ?  I  find  that  the  very  moment  that  God  made  man, 
and  gave  him  that  glorious  humanity  which  we  have  seen,  that 
-moment  Almighty  God  put  that  humanity  to  the  test ;  and  the 
test  was  TEMPERANXE ;  to  abstain.  We  find  God  created  all 
things  in  this  world  ;  but  he  spoke  to  no  creature  but  man. 
He  put  an  intelligent  law  upon  no  creature  except  man.  He 
gave  man  the  nobility  of  his  nature.  He  made  him  the  master- 
piece of  His  creation.  And  the  moment  he  was  created  and 
opened  his  eyes,  he  beheld  the  face  and  beauty  of  God,  and 
hearkened  to  the  music  of  God's  voice.  The  very  first  thing 
God  said  to  him  was,  "  You  are  a  man.  You  are  the  prince  and 
ruler  of  all  this  world,  which  I  have  made  for  you.  I  will  test 
your  humanity ;  abstain  from  the  fruit  of  that  tree ;  be  temper- 
ate." The  very  test  of  his  humanity  !  "  If  you  are  a  man,  as 
I  have  created  you — abstain  ;  be  a  temperate  man."  "What 
brought  all  the  miseries  and  all  the  woes  from  which  we  suffer 
into  the  world?  The  intemperance  of  the  man  and  the  woman. 
They  could  not  restrain  themselves.  They  saw  the  forbidden 
fruit ;  took  it,  and  ate  it.     Just  ?ike  the  drunkard,  who  will  tell 


Temperance  the  greatest  Blessing  of  Man,  5 1 5 

you,  as  they  have  often  told  me,  "  Well,  your  reverence,  if  I  did 
not  see  it,  I  would  not  think  of  it  from  Monday  morning  to  Sat- 
urday night."  When  they  have  it  before  their  eyes  they  cannot 
help  taking  it.  It  is  the  usual  way.  Hence,  we  priests  are 
always  telling  men  who  are  inclined  to  be  drunkards,  "  In  God's 
name  keep  out  of  the  saloon  ;  don't  look  at  it ;  turn  away  from 
it ;  don't  smell  it."  For  the  worst  of  this  passion  is,  that  when 
once  it  has  been  excited  in  man,  it  is  the  worst  of  slavery,  and 
leaves  a  man  no  will  of  his  own.  It  not  only  destroys  the  rear 
son,  but  leaves  him  no  will.  I  have  known  of  a  man  who  took 
the  pledge.  He  swore — before  he  went  to  the  priest  to  take  it 
— a  solenm  oath,  in  the  presence  of  his  companions,  that,  if  he 
were  to  die  for  it,  not  one  drop  of  whiskey  should  ever  pass  his 
lips.  He  went  to  the  priest,  and  there  made  a  tremendous 
pledge.  His  companions  had  made  a  bet  on  it  that  they  would 
not  ask  him  to  drink,  nor  treat  him  in  the  house,  but  only  fill  a 
glass  of  whiskey,  and  talk  to  him,  and  lead  him  gradually  over 
until  he  got  a  sight  of  it.  The  moment  he  saw  it  the  hankering 
for  drink  took  hold  of  him,  and  he  lifted  the  glass.  Then  they 
gave  him  another  chance.  When  he  had  it  in  his  hand  they 
said  to  him  :  "  Now,  remember,  you  took  the  pledge,  and  a  sol- 
emn oath  ;  you  become  a  perjurer  before  God,  and  commit  a 
mortal  sin,  if  you  drink  it!"  He  drank  it;  and  this  was  the 
excuse — that  he  could  not  stand  the  smell  of  it.  They  let  him 
near  enough  to  smell  it. 

Reflect  again.  The  two  greatest  crimes  recorded  in  the 
Scriptures,  which  Almighty  God  has  revealed  to  us,  were  ex- 
pressly committed  under  the  influence  of  drink.  The  first,  the 
crime  committed  by  Lot,  in  the  days  of  Abraham,  after  he  had 
escaped  from  Sodom.  Secondly,  the  great  public  apostasy  of 
the  Jewish  nation,  who  worshipped  their  idol  in  the  very  pres 
ence  of  God.  The  patriarch  Lot  lived  for  many  years  in  the 
city  of  Sodom.  It  was  the  worst  and  most  infamous  city  in  the 
world.  So  Almighty  God  opened  the  floodgates,  and  rained 
down  living  fire  from  heaven,  and  destroyed  the  whole  city  and 
nation.  In  the  midst  of  that  city  lived  Lot.  So  holy  was  he, 
and  so  pure  had  he  kept  himself,  that  when  the  three  angels 
were  sent  by  Almighty  God  to  destroy  the  city,  they  came 
and  said  to  him:  "Go  out  of  this  place ;  take  your  wife  and 
children  and  go  out."     He  arose  and   took  his  wife  and  two 


5i6  Drunkenness  the  worst  Degradation — 

full-grown  daughters,  and  fled  from  Sodom.  The  city  was 
burned  by  fire  ;  the  wife  was  struck  dead  for  her  disobedience  ; 
and  there  remained  to  him  only  the  two  women,  his  own  daugh- 
ters. An  impious  thought  came  into  the  minds  of  these  two 
women.  They  wished  to  commit  sin  with  their  own  father.  It 
is  enough  to  make  a  man's  blood  run  cold  to  think  of  it.  What 
did  they  do  ?  They  got  a  bottle  of  strong  wine,  and  made  the 
old  man  drunk ;  when  he  was  drunk  he  committed  the  sin ;  and 
thus  brought  down  the  greatest  curse.  So  great  was  the  anger 
of  God,  that  of  the  children  born  of  that  infamous  act,  all  their 
race  were  cursed  to  the  end  of  time.  St.  Jerome,  looking  at 
this  example,  says  :  "  My  God  !  there  was  a  man  able  to  live  in 
Sodom,  the  worst  place  in  the  whole  world ;  so  pure  as  to  be  fit 
to  entertain  the  angels  of  heaven  ;  who  no  sooner  got  the  bottle 
of  wine  in  his  hand  than  he  commits  one  of  the  greatest  crimes 
that  can  be  imagined  or  conceived  by  man." 

The  next  crime  committed,  the  greatest  recorded  in  Scripture, 
was  this.     Moses  led   the  people  of  Israel  through  the  desert 
until  they  came  to  Mount  Sinai.     There  arose  the  mighty,  soli- 
tary,  solemn   mountain    before   them.      All    Israel    encamped 
around  it.     He  said  :  "  I  will  go  up  and  speak  unto  God  ;  re- 
main here  until  I  return."     The  moment  he  said  these  words, 
the  clouds  covered  the  mountain-tops ;  the  thunders  of  heaven 
rattled ;  the  lightnings  flashed  ;  and  the  people  were  frightened, 
and  they  cried,  "  O  God,  Thou  art  present ;  spare  us  !  "     The 
voice  of  God  ceased  thundering  forth  from  the  clouds.     Moses 
ascended  the  mountain  ;  and  the  people  "sat  down  to  feast  and 
to  drink."     What  did  they  do?     When  they  got  well  warmed 
up  with  wine,  and  half  drunk — while  the  cloud  was  upon  the 
hill,  with  the  thunders  of  God's  voice  yet  echoing  in  their  ears — 
with  their  prophet  and  leader  up  in  this  cloud,  and  a  terrible 
darkness  on  Sinai — the  people  put  up  a  golden  calf,  and  kneeled 
down  and  adored  it ;  because  they  were  half  drunk  !  "  The  peo- 
ple," says  the  Scripture,  "  sat  down  to  drink."     It  was  the  first 
great  idolatry  of  Israel ;  the  first  great  sin  since  God  had  brought 
them  forth  from  Egypt.     So  great  was  the  sin,  that  God  in  His 
great  anger  proposed  to  the  prophet  and  said,  "  I  will  destroy 
them   and   create   a   new   people  for   myself."     And   it   came 
through  drink ! 

Consider  again.     We  see  that  the  first  curse  came  to  and 


Temperance  the  greatest  Blessing  of  Man.  517 

upon  Adam  and  Eve  when  they  refused  to  abstain,  refused  to 
be  temperate.  When  God  destroyed  the  world  in  the  universal 
deluge,  Noah  and  his  family  were  spared,  and  the  curse  of 
God  was  washed  away.  All  the  iniquity  of  the  world  was 
washed  away  in  the  deluge ;  nothing  remained,  therefore, 
now,  but  the  blessing.  How,  my  friends,  I  ask  you,  how  did 
the  curse  upon  the  earth  come  again?  How  did  the  curse, 
extinguished  in  the  waters  of  the  deluge,  revive  again  to  be 
perpetuated  in  the  whole  race  ?  Through  the  sin  of  drunk- 
enness. Noah  sat  amongst  his  vines,  and  pressed  the  grape; 
he  drank  the  wine  and  got  drunk.  Out  of  that  drunkenness  of 
the  Patriarch  came  the  curse  that  fell  upon  Chanaan  and  his 
descendants  ;  upon  the  whole  nations  of  his  posterity  to  the  end 
of  time.  What  need  have  I,  therefore,  to  multiply  the  exam- 
ples from  revealed  truth  of  the  awfulness  of  this  sin  of  drunken- 
ness ?  What  need  that  I  should  tell  you  that  if  there  is  one 
truth  prominently  put  forth  in  the  Scriptures,  more  than  any 
other,  it  is  the  word  that  was  spoken — "That  the  drunkard 
shall  never  inherit  the  kingdom  of  God." 

Passing  from  the  old  law,  what  does  the  Gospel  tell  us  ?  Oh  ! 
my  friends,  the  sons  of  temperance,  I  ask  you  to  stand  in  spirit 
at  the  foot  of  the  cross,  on  which  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of  God, 
hangs  dying!  Behold  Him,  wounded  from  head  to  foot,  bleed- 
ing from  every  member  of  His  body;  His  heart  throbbing 
faintly  within  Him,  as  it  approaches  its  breaking;  and  the 
thirst  of  the  agony  of  death  upon  His  lips  !  That  we  may  know 
that  He  thirsted,  with  His  dying  lips  He  cried:  "I  thirst." 
That  crucified  Man-God,  lifted  up  on  the  cross,  sent  forth  this 
word  :  "  I  thirst  1  "  I  am  dying  of  thirst !  They  took  a  sponge, 
and  steeped  it  in  wine  mixed  with  myrrh,  and  put  it  upon  the 
end  of  a  cane,  and  put  it  up  to  His  lips,  the  lips  of  the  dying 
Man,  a  Man  dying  of  thirst ;  the  Man  permitting  the  complaint 
of  thirst  to  come  from  His  lips  quivering  in  agony  !  Did  the 
Lord  take  the  drink?  No!  He  closed  His  lips,  the  dying 
lips !  Oh  !  that  I  could  send  it  forth  to  ring  as  it  came  from 
the  lips  of  Jesus  Christ  Himself  that  word—"  I  thirst !  "  Oh  I 
that  I  could  send  it  forth  to  ring  in  every  Christian  heart,  what 
the  Evangelist  says — "He  refused  to  drink  ! "  He  shut  His 
lips,  and  turned  away  His  dying  head,  that  we  may  know  that 
the  curse  was  in  the  drink. 


5  1 8  Dj-nnkc7iness  the  worst  Degradation — 

And  now,  my  friends,  I  have  said  enough  to  you  as  Cath- 
olics. I  now  speak  to  you  as  Irishmen.  I  appeal  to  your  ex- 
perience. 1  invite  you  to  go  back  a  little  to  the  past ;  and 
when  I  speak  to  you  of  the  past,  I  ask  you  to  put  your  hand  in 
mine,  and  sweep,  upon  the  wings  of  memory,  the  three  thou- 
sand miles  of  intervening  ocean,  to  stand  with  me  for  a  moment 
upon  the  green  hills  of  the  dear  old  land  of  Ireland.  I  will 
only  take  one  instance  of  our  national  history  ;  of  many,  I  put 
one  before  you.  In  1798,  the  weak  hand  of  Ireland,  after  its 
three  hundred  years  of  persecution,  civil  and  national — ^just 
after  the  seven  hundred  years  of  our  national  struggle — drew 
the  national  sword  for  the  last  time.  There  were  thirty-six 
thousand  English  soldiers  upon  Irish  soil.  The  curse  of 
division,  the  old  curse,  was  upon  the  land  ;  and  when  the  nation 
was  shaken,  two  counties  only  arose.  Glorious  Wicklow  arose, 
with  heroic  Wexford,  unarmed  as  they  were.  Taking  only, 
the  mower  his  scythe,  and  the  reaper  his  sickle,  the  old  man 
and  the  young  man  the  gleaming  pike  in  their  hands,  they  went 
out  to  meet  the  artillery  and  musketry  of  England.  And  when, 
as  the  storm  rises,  a  sudden  gust  blows  the  chaff  of  the  win- 
nowing grain  before  it,  so  the  heroic  men  of  Wicklow  and  Wex- 
ford— rising  in  their  national  anger — drove  the  brave  army  of 
England  like  chaff  before  the  winds  of  heaven.  As  long  as  they 
kept  sober,  as  long  as  in  their  sobriety  they  kept  their  arms 
nerved  for  the  struggle  by  the  strong  thoughts  that  were  in 
their  Irish  minds,  so  long  no  force  that  England  could  bring 
against  them  could  sweep  them  from  the  field.  But  a  day  came 
of  reverses  ;  a  retreat  was  made  from  Ross,  from  Wexford  ; 
and  the  gallant  men  of  these  two  counties  were  assembled  in 
their  divisions  upon  the  hill  adjoining  the  town  of  Enniscorthy, 
called  Vinegar  Hill.  The  British  soldiers  came  in  their  thou- 
sands, and  surrounded  the  base  of  the  hill.  What  does  the  his- 
torian tell  us?  He  says  that  the  English  soldiers  spent  that 
night  in  silence,  preparing  their  arms  and  looking  after  their 
powder  and  ammunition,  and  putting  their  batteries  of  cannon 
into  line  ;  drawing  up  their  cavalry  in  preparation  for  the  morn- 
ing. What  were  the  poor  fools  on  the  hill  doing  ?  He  says 
they  spent  the  night  in  drinking  and  rioting  !  They  thought 
that  the  old  heart  was  in  them,  and  it  was  in  them  ;  they 
thought  that  the   manly  arm   might   do  again  what   it  had  so 


Temperance  the  greatest  Blessing  of  Man.  519 

often  done  before.  So  it  might.  But  the  devil — that  hates 
Irishmen — the  demon  of  drink,  went  in  amongst  them  ;  and 
when  the  morning  Hght  appeared,  it  found  the  men  exhausted 
from  the  riot  and  orgies  of  the  night,  unable  to  strike  a  blow 
for  their  God  and  for  their  country.  It  is  the  last  memorable 
record  of  our  national  contest.  We  were  beaten  to  the  earth  ; 
and  the  best  blood  of  Wicklow  and  Wexford  flowed  in  streams 
from  out  the  hearts  of  Irishmen,  down  the  sides  of  that  fatal 
hill,  on  that  day.  But  it  was  not  the  soldiers  of  England  that 
conquered  ;  it  was  the  demon  of  drunkenness. 

Now,  let  us  leave  Ireland,  and  come  to  this  land.  It  is  a  fine 
land.  It  is  not  mine  ;  for,  until  I  die,  I  shall  have  no  other 
land  except  some  six  feet  in  some  old  churchyard,  where  the 
prayers  of  Irish  mothers  shall  ascend  to  heaven  over  my  grave, 
and  where  the  shamrock  shall  bloom  out  of  my  body.  But  this 
land  of  America  is  God's  gift  to  you.  It  is  your  land.  It  lies 
before  you  ;  and  it  is  for  you,  with  the  intellects  and  the  ener- 
gies of  Irishmen,  to  lay  hold,  each  one,  of  his  own  portion  of 
the  land,  so  as  to  be  able  to  say,  what  you  were  not  allowed  to 
say  at  home  :  "  I  stand  upon  my  own."  It  is  now,  my  friends, 
some  three  or  four  and  twenty  years  since  the  heart-broken  men 
of  Ireland  turned  their  faces  to  America.  Crushed,  saddened, 
not  allowed  to  live  at  home,  her  children  turned  to  the  far  west- 
ern, mighty  land,  and  said :  "  Let  us  go  forth,  and  bring  our 
faith  and  our  God  with  us  ;  and  whatever  gifts  of  nature  and  of 
grace  that  God  has  given  us."  You  came  ;  you  landed.  I  came 
to  see  how  you  were  getting  on.  Tell  me  :  Why  have  you  not 
more  wealth,  more  money?  Why,  while  Ireland  has  sent  nearly 
eight  millions  to  America  of  her  sons,  why  have  you  not,  in 
God's  name,  eight  hundred  million  acres  of  American  soil  in  your 
hands  ?  Is  it  for  want  of  genius  or  of  talent  amongst  us  ?  Many 
nations  have  sent  their  children  to  America;  but  no  nation  has 
sent  so  much  mind  to  America  as  Ireland.  Is  it  for  want  of 
physical  energy,  strength,  and  determination  ?  The  cities  of 
America,  the  workshops  of  America,  attest  that  no  nation  has 
sent  such  strong  arms  to  America  as  Ireland,  Is  it  for  want  of 
any  gift  of  God  ?  No.  We  are  the  only  people  that  touched 
the  American  shore  bringing  with  them  an  united  faith — a  re- 
ligion which  came  to  us  directly  from  God.  Why,  then,  in  God's 
name,  is  it  that  we  have  not   taken  a  larger  hold  upon  this 


520  Drunkenness  the  worst  Degradation — 

soil  ?  Why  are  we  not  more  in  the  position  of  the  rulers  of  this 
land?  I  am  afraid,  if  I  go  into  the  causes  of  this,  I  must  set  at 
the  head  of  all,  the  sin  of  drink.  I  do  not  mean  to  say  that  we 
drink  more  than  other  people.  I  believe  that  the  Scotch  drink 
more  than  the  Irish. — So  they  say  themselves.  I  would  not  say 
a  bad  word  of  any  man  or  of  any  nation  ;  God  forbid ! — Still, 
we  have  the  evidence  of  a  Scottish  poet,  that  when  "  Willie 
brewed  a  peck  of  malt,"  two  friends  came  to  see  it.  And  it  is 
said  they  sat  there  until  the  sun  in  the  morning  arose,  and  then 
they  were  able  to  say : 

"  We're  na  that  fou*. 
But  just  a  wee  drap  in  our  e'e." 

Well,  it  is  not  a  question  who  drinks  more  or  less,  but  the 
man  who  drinks  at  all ;  who,  with  impious  hand,  goes  and  cuts 
down  the  fruit-tree  upon  which  he  lives,  laying  his  axe  to  the 
root ;  and  saps  his  very  sustenance,  and  fells  it  to  the  ground 
before  his  eyes.  The  question  is,  who  comes,  with  impious 
hands,  to  sap  the  very  foundations  of  his  own  manhood  by  that 
deplorable  curse  of  drunkenness?  Well,  what  does  our  experi- 
ence in  the  land  tell  us  ?  Oh !  my  friends,  a  man  wrote  in  Jersey 
City  a  letter,  in  which  he  abused  me,  and  printed  it  in  the  pub- 
lic press.  Well,  I  never  was  abused  until  I  came  to  America. 
Somebody  said  to  me,  when  I  was  leaving  Ireland  :  "  Father 
Tom,  you  had  better  be  careful,  and  keep  quiet  in  America,  and 
not  make  any  noise  at  all,  else  some  of  these  people  will  come 
out  and  abuse  you."  At  first  I  thought  I  should  feel  it 
keenly ;  but  I  have  received  plenty  of  abuse  since  I  came ;  and 
it  goes  off  me  like  water  off  a  duck's  back.  But  I  will  tel\ 
you  what  I  feel.  I  feel  keenly  when  this  man  says,  "  What 
right  have  you  to  talk  of  your  religion  and  about  your 
country?  Who  fill  our  jails  but  your  Irish  people?"  Well,  I 
have  a  word  to  say  about  that.  I  believe  a  great  many  people 
go  to  jail  and  take  Irish  names.  I  was  down  in  Memphis  a  few 
months  ago  ;  and  while  I  was  there  a  cabman,  driving  a  cab  in 
the  city,  stabbed,  and  more  than  half-killed,  an  unfortunate  man. 
When  he  was  arrested,  three  or  four  days  afterwards,  for  the 
deed,  it  went  all  over  town,  "  Did  you  hear  that  Fatty  Maginnis 
has  killed  a  man  ? "  When  I  heard  of  it.  I  said  to  myself, 
"  Fatty  "  must  be  an  Americanism  ;  but,  surely,  Maginnis  is  an 
Irish  name?     The  next  day  his  real  name  came  out;  and  it  was 


Temperance  the  greatest  Blessmg  of  Man,  521 

"Vance."  So  these  men  will  give  themselves  this,  that,  or  the 
other  name,  which  is  purely  Irish,  but  when  you  will  come  to 
scratch  a  little  below  the  surface,  you  will  find  an  Englishman, 
or  a  Scotchman,  or  a  native  American,  of  pure  blood,  or  a 
Frenchman,  or  some  other  nationality.  It  is  mighty  convenient 
to  take  an  Irish  name.  They  make  it  cover  a  multitude  of  sins, 
from  time  to  time. 

Still,  my  friends,  there  is  some  truth  in  what  the  man  said ; 
but  yet  if  Irishmen  are  found  thronging  the  jails  of  the  Unit- 
ed States,  it  is  not  a  bad  heart,  or  a  hard  heart,  brings  them 
there;  it  is  not  a  debased  and  impure  nature  that  brings  them 
there ;  they  are  not  brought  there  for  dishonoring  their  own 
kith  and  kin  in  the  viler  sins  that  the  world  commits;  it  is  the 
demon  of  drink  and  nothing  else.  Unfortunately,  we  read  in 
the  papers :  "  Last  night,  at  one  or  two  o'clock,  in  such  a  sa- 
loon, on  such  a  street,  two  men  came  in  and  asked  for  drink. 
Getting  drunk,  one  of  them  drew  a  revolver  and  shot  the  other 
to  the  death."  In  nine  cases  out  of  ten,  every  crime  we 
hear  of — especially  where  Irishmen  are  mixed  up — occurs  at 
the  saloon,  at  the  bar.  It  is  caused  by  the  drink.  What  can 
be  more  horrible  than  the  case  before  our  eyes  a  few  days  ago. 

God  forbid  that  I  should  say  a  word  against  the  dead,  espe- 
cially a  man  who  died  invoking  that  mercy  that  was  never  in- 
voked in  vain — as  we  believe  and  think.  Still,  his  career  was 
instructive  to  us.  Patrick  Morrison,  the  son  of  an  Irish  father 
and  mother,  is  brought  to  the  scaffold ;  and  when  the  rope  is 
around  his  neck  to  swing  him  out  of  this  world  as  unworthy  to 
live  here — with  his  own  mother's  blood  red  upon  his  hands ;  for 
he  had  taken  a  big  carving-knife  from  the  table,  and  plunged 
it  to  the  hilt  in  his  mother's  heart! — Ah!  when  he  came  to 
that  scaffold,  and  stood  face  to  face  with  his  God,  did  he  not 
tell  the  world,  and  tell  you,  that  he  did  not  know  what  he  was 
doing  when  he  did  the  deed,  or  where  he  did  it — the  most  un- 
Irish  crime  that  he  could  commit!  Never  could  a  man  act 
more  against  his  own  nature,  as  a  Christian,  and  as  an  Irish- 
man. Why,  if  there  be  any  peculiarity  about  us  that  distin- 
guishes us  from  other  people,  it  is  that  the  old  people,  as  long 
as  they  live,  have  their  place  in  our  hearts.  An  Irishman  may 
cross  the  Atlantic,  and  work  like  a  slave  but  the  first  dollar 
that  comes  into   his  hand  goes  home  to  the  old  father  and 


522  Drunkenness  the  worst  Degradation — 

mother  in  the  old  country.  And  his  one  darling  thought  is  to 
bring  them  to  him,  that  he  may  have  their  blessing  when  they 
are  dying,  or  at  least  to  cross  the  waves  and  see  them  once  be- 
fore they  lose  sight  of  the  world.  That  is  the  Irishman's  heart. 
That  is  the  Irishman's  nature.  Of  all  the  men  in  the  world, 
think  of  an  Irishman  standing  on  the  scaffold,  with  a  rope 
around  his  neck,  with  the  blood  of  his  mother  on  his  hands! 
It  was  not  the  Irishman  ;  it  was  a  drunken  man. 

What  is  our  experience?  Oh,  my  God  !  I  could  put  before 
you  here  the  woman  yet  in  the  prime  of  life,  and  who  ought  to 
be  in  the  bloom  of  her  age  and  of  her  beauty  ;  the  woman  who, 
ten  or  twelve  years  ago,  had  the  misfortune  to  give  her  Irish 
virgin  heart,  and  pure,  loving,  virginal  hand  to  a  drunkard. 
The  red  was  on  her  lip,  and  the  rose  was  on  her  cheek ;  the 
light  of  love  and  the  beam  of  purity  were  in  her  eyes.  She 
was  born  one  of  God's  own  ladies;  created  a  lady;  a  lady  in 
purity  of  thought,  in  delicacy  of  sentiment,  in  her  gentleness, 
in  her  modesty.  But  now,  with  her  three  or  four  starving,  neg- 
lected children  around  her,  she  stands  before  me,  clothed  in  un- 
womanly rags,  covered  with  unwomanly  dirt  and  filth  ;  her 
languid  eye  bears  the  expression  of  despair,  tempered  only 
with  that  light  of  hope  that  comes  to  a  Christian,  at  all  times, 
with  the  prospect  of  eternity.  Her  anguished  heart  has  ceased 
to  beat  with  any  interest  in  the  things  of  this  world ;  her  voice 
has  lost  its  youthful  freshness,  and  has  descended  to  the  low, 
wailing  cry  of  the  poverty-stricken  and  the  wretched.  Oh, 
where  is  the  bloom  upon  her  face?  Gone  !  The  pallor  of  the 
grave  is  there  !  Where  is  the  beauty  that  surrounded  her,  and 
followed  her  footsteps  ?  Gone !  Nothing  but  emaciation  is 
there  !  Where  is  the  light  of  love  that  comes  from  a  pure  soul  ? 
Gone !  Nothing  remains  but  a  haggard  smile,  and  an  empty 
laugh,  that  sounds  from  her  like  the  echo  from  the  tomb ! 
Whence  all  this  misery  ;  this  blighted  hope  ;  this  abandonment ; 
this  longing  desire  that  God,  in  His  mercy,  would  take  her  un- 
der His  grace  and  care,  and  come,  with  His  angry  hand,  and 
strike  the  cause  of  her  misfortune?  It  is  all  epitomized  in 
that  one,  debased,  besotted,  unfeeling  drunkard,  on  whom  God 
has  set,  and  we  see,  the  marks  of  drunkenness,  viz. :  the  brutal- 
ity of  the  mind,  the  infirmity  of  the  body,  the  hardness  and 
foolishness  of  the   heart,  poverty,  and  a  debased  and  impure 


Temperance  the  greatest  Blessing  of  Man.  523 

love.  These  are  the  offspring  of  drunkenness  ;  and  they  are  all 
upon  the  face  of  the  wretch,  who  has  not  only  destroyed  his 
own  life,  and  shattered  his  own  reputation,  but  has  forfeited 
and  renounced  all  his  prospects  in  this  world  and  the  world  to 
come.  Not  only  has  he  done  this  to  himself,  but  he  has  struck, 
with  unpitying  hand,  the  woman  whom  he  swore  before  God 
to  cherish,  and  nourish,  and  protect ;  and  has  brought  children 
into  this  world  only  to  swell  the  list  of  our  criminals,  and  of  our 
neglected  and  abandoned  little  ones.  He  has,  in  this  world, 
only  fulfilled  one  mission,  and  that  is  to  blight  and  destroy, 
wherever  his  baneful  influence  or  his  infamous  breath  can 
reach. 

This  is  the  drunkard.  I  will  not  follow  him  in  my  experi- 
ence, or  invite  you  to  follow  him  to  his  death-bed,  and  to  his 
grave.  I  shrink  away,  in  fear  and  horror,  from  the  thought  to 
follow  him  to  the  tribunal-seat  of  God's  judgment,  when  the 
catalogue  of  his  crimes  comes  up  before  God — cursing,  and 
lying,  and  theft,  and  adultery,  and  bloodshed  ;  and  the  agony, 
when  the  cry  comes  from  the  nether  hell,  of  the  souls  whom  he 
has  sent  down  there,  in  their  despair  ;  and  when  the  cry  comes, 
from  the  other  side,  of  the  broken-hearted  wife  and  abandoned 
children,  to  whom  he  brought  misery,  and  destitution,  and  de- 
spair in  this  world  ;  and  from  others,  whom  he  shut  out  almost 
from  every  hope  of  mercy. 

Now,  my  friends,  I  ask  you,  is  not  this  a  great  evil?  And  is 
not  its  remedy  a  great  blessing?  Is  not  the  mission  which  you 
men  in  this  temperance  society  of  New  Jersey  have,  and  which 
Almighty  God  has  put  in  your  hands,  the  most  glorious  work 
which  He  could  ever  give  you  to  accomplish  ?  You  can  do  it, 
with  His  grace.  You  can  be  temperate  yourselves,  and  be 
lights  of  temperance  if  His  grace  is  in  you.  The  Church  takes 
you  to  her  arms,  and  invites  you  to  her  sacraments.  For, 
without  confession  and  communion,  no  man  can  have  grace  or 
virtue  ;  and  temperance  is  both  one  and  the  other.  Yes  !  I 
am  proud  to  address  you  ;  proud,  as  a  Catholic  priest,  to  ad- 
dress his  Catholic  brethren  ;  proud,  as  an  Irishman,  to  address 
those  who  love  the  land  from  which  I  came ;  proud,  as  a  man, 
addressing  men — not  the  remains  of  men.  Treasure,  therefore, 
this  virtue  of  temperance.  Refuse  that  which  your  divine 
Model  and  Lord  refused  upon  the  cross.     Treasure  this  virtue 


524  Drunkenness  the  worst  Degradation  of  Man. 

of  temperance  as  a  precious  gem  from  heaven.  Try  to  dissemi- 
nate and  to  propagate  it.  In  doing  this  you  will  be  making  your- 
selves and  your  fellow-Irishmen,  and  the  Irish  name,  an  honor 
to  your  ancient  motherland,  a  prop  and  a  glory  to  the  land  of 
your  adoption,  a  strength  and  an  argument  to  the  Holy  Cath- 
olic religion  which  you  profess.  You  will  be  making  yourselves 
all  that  God  intended  you  to  be,  when  He  made  you  Catholics 
and  Irishmen,  and  crowned  both  with  the  glory  of  making  you 
American  citizens. 

I  regret  that  there  is  one*  absent  from  us  this  evening,  whose 
presence,  certainly,  would  have  lent  strength  and  vigor  to  my 
words.  I  regret  that,  coming  before  you,  I  have  not  had  the 
advantage  of  that  hand  lifted  more  than  once  on  my  unworthy 
head  in  its  episcopal  blessing ;  that  hand,  which,  for  so  many 
years,  has  tioken  to  you  the  Bread  of  Life.  I  regret  that  he  is 
not  here  to-night,  whom  you  will  speedily  have  the  misfortune 
— I  call  it  nothing  else — of  losing.  He  is  going  from  amongst 
you,  whose  voice  and  clear  eye  ever  told  you  the  glory  of  your 
religion,  and  the  necessity  of  this  magnificent  virtue  of  tem- 
perance. His  memory  you  will  treasure,  because,  though  he 
may  go  forth  to  a  higher  and  wider  sphere  of  ecclesiastical  dig- 
nity, I  believe  that  his  heart  and  his  love  will  remain  in  the 
midst  of  you.  Let  every  man  amongst  you  remember  that 
his  memory  can  only  be  embalmed  amongst  you  as  long  as  you 
live,  and  practise,  and  propagate  the  glorious  virtue  which  he 
preached,  and  of  which  he  was  so  prominent  an  example  among 
the  bishops  of  this  land. 

Now,  nothing  remains  for  me  but  to  thank  you  for  the 
patience  with  which  you  have  heard  me.  If  I  have  instructed, 
and  enlightened,  and  pleased  any  amongst  you,  I  am  very  glad 
of  it.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  I  have  only  annoyed  you,  or  made 
you  feel  the  time  long,  all  I  can  say  is,  I  did  not  do  it  on 
purpose. 

*  Most  Reverend  J.  R.  Bayley,  D.D.,  Bishop  of  Newark,  N.  J. 


•V 

I 


THE  GENIUS  AND  CHARACTER  OF 
THE  IRISH  PEOPLE. 


[Lecture  delivered  in  the  Coliseum,  Boston,  on  Sunday  afternoon,  September  22, 
1872,  before  the  largest  paying  audience  ever  assembled  to  listen  to  one  man, 
amounting  to  over  40,000  people  ;  the  proceeds  were  for  the  benefit  of  the  Home 
for  Destitute  Catholic  children.] 

EN  of  Ireland,  men  of  Irish  blood,  men  of  the  Irish 
race,  I,  an  Irish  priest,  am  come  here  to  speak  to  you 
of  **  The  Genius  and  the  Character  of  the  Irish  Peo- 
ple." I  am  come  to  speak  to  you  of  the  history  of  our 
nation,  and  our  honorable  race.  I  am  not  ashamed  of  the  history 
of  my  people.  I  am  not  ashamed  of  my  country.  I  say,  taking 
all  for  all,  that  it  is  the  grandest  country,  and  the  most  glorious 
race,  of  which  the  genius  of  history  can  bear  record. 

There  are  two  elements  that  constitute  the  character  and  the 
genius  of  every  people.  These  two  elements  are  :  The  religion 
of  the  people,  and  their  government.  I  need  not  tell  you  that, 
of  all  the  influences  that  can  be  brought  to  bear  upon  any  man, 
or  upon  any  nation,  the  most  powerful  is  the  influence  of  their 
religion.  If  that  religion  be  from  God,  it  will  make  a  God-like 
people.  If  that  religion  be  from  heaven,  it  will  make  a  heavenly 
people.     If  that  religion  be  noble,  it  will  make  a  noble  people. 

Side  by  side  with  their  religion  comes  the  form  or  system  of 
government  under  which  they  live.  If  that  government  be  just 
and  fair,  and  mild  and  beneficent,  it  will  make  a  noble  people. 
If  that  government  be  the  government  of  the  people — governing 
themselves  as  glorious  America  does  to-day — it  will  make  every 
man  in  the  land  a  lover  of  his  government,  a  lover  of  the  land, 
and  a  lover  of  the  institutions  under  which  he  lives.  But  if  that 
government  be  a  foreign  government — the  government  of  a 
foreign  race — it  will  make  an  alienated  people.     If  that  govern- 


526         The  Genius  and  Character  of  the  Irish  People. 

ment  be  an  unjust  and  tyrannical  government,  it  will  make  a 
rebellious  and  a  revolutionary  people.  If  that  government  be  a 
mere  travesty  or  caricature  of  law,  it  will  make  a  false-hearted 
and  a  bad  people. 

Now,  when  I  come  to  speak  of  the  genius  and  the  character 
of  my  fellow-countrymen,  I  am  reminded  that,  in  the  character 
of  every  people  on  the  face  of  the  earth,  there  is  light  and  shade. 
There  is  the  bright  side  and  the  dark  side  ;  there  is  the  sun- 
shine and  the  shadow.  There  is  the  side  which  we  love  to  con- 
template ;  the  side  in  which  the  virtues  of  the  people  shine 
out ;  the  side  which  the  better  part  of  their  nature  governs. 
And  there  is  also  the  bad  side ;  the  side  that  we  are  ashamed 
to  look  upon  ;  the  side,  the  contemplation  of  which  makes  a 
blush  rise  to  the  cheek  of  every  lover  of  the  land.  And  so 
there  are  lights  and  shades  in  the  character  and  in  the  genius 
of  our  Irish  people.  As  it  is  in  nature,  this  world,  in  all  its 
beauty,  is  made  up  of  light  and  shade. 

My  friends,  there  is  no  sunshine  without  shadow;  there  is 
no  light  perceptible  to  the  eye  of  man  unless  that  light  bring 
out  all  that  is  fair  and  beautiful,  whilst,  at  the  same  time,  it 
casts  its  shadows  over  the  dark  places.  I  have  said,  that  in 
the  order  of  nature,  and  in  the  beauty  of  God's  creation  here 
below,  there  is  light  and  shade.  But  there  is  this  distinction 
to  be  made:  the  light  comes  from  heaven — from  the  sun,  roll- 
ing in  its  splendor  over  the  clouds  above  us ;  the  shadow 
comes  from  the  earth;  from  the  clouds  that  are  near  the  world  ; 
from  the  deep  forest  glade;  from  the  overhanging  mountains; 
from  these  comes  the  shadow,  but  the  light  comes  from  heaven. 
So,  in  like  manner,  in  the  character  and  in  the  genius  of  our 
Irish  people,  there  are  both  light  and  shade.  There  is  the 
bright  side,  the  beautiful  side,  the  glorious  side,  to  contemplate  ; 
and  there  is  also  the  dark  side,  but  with  this  difference,  that 
the  lightsome,  the  beautiful  side  of  Irish  genius  and  character 
is  derived  from  above — from  heaven,  from  God — from  the  high 
source  of  Irish  faith  ;  whilst  the  black  side  of  our  character,  the 
dark  and  the  gloomy  shade,  comes  from  below ;  from  the  mis- 
government  of  those  who  ruled  us  ;  from  the  treachery,  the 
depravity,  and  the  wickedness  of  man. 

And  now,  so  much  being  said,  let  us  approach  the  great  sub- 
ject of  the  Genius  and  the  Character  of  the  Irish  people. 


Tlie  Genius  and  Character  of  the  Irish  People,         527 

In  speaking  to  you,  my  friends,  on  this  subject,  I  am  forcibly 
reminded  that  the  character  and  genius  of  every  people  are 
formed  by  their  history.  In  going  back  to  the  history  of  Ire- 
land, I  am  obliged  to  travel  nearly  two  thousand  years  in  order 
to  come  to  the  cradle  of  my  race.  I  am  obliged  to  go  back  to 
the  day  when  Patrick,  Ireland's  apostle,  preached  to  the  Irish 
race,  and  in  the  Irish  language,  the  name  and  the  glory  of  Jesus 
Christ  and  of  His  Virgin  mother.  And  coming  down  through 
that  mournful  and  checkered  history,  I  find  that  our  people 
have  been  formed  in  their  national  character  and  genius,  first  of 
all,  by  the  faith  which  Patrick  taught  them  ;  and,  secondly,  by 
the  form  of  government  under  which  they  live. 

What  is  the  first  grand  feature  of  the  Irish  genius  and  the 
Irish  character?  It  is  this:  that,  having  once  received  the 
Catholic  faith  from  St.  Patrick,  Ireland  has  clung  to  it  with  a 
fidelity  surpassing  that  of  all  other  peoples.  She  has  known 
how  to  suffer  and  how  to  die  ;  but  Ireland's  people  have  never 
learned  to  relinquish  or  to  abandon  the  faith  of  their  fathers. 
They  received  that  faith  from  the  glorious  apostle  whom  God 
and  Rome  sent  to  them,  early  in  the  fifth  century;  they  strug- 
gled for  that  faith  during  three  hundred  years,  against  all  the 
power  of  the  North — unconquered  and  unconquerable — when 
the  Danes  endeavored  to  wrest  from  Ireland  her  Christian  faith, 
and  to  force  her  back  into  the  darkness  of  Pagan  infidelity. 
They  have  struggled  for  that  faith  during  three  hundred  years 
of  English  tyranny  and  English  penal  law.  They  have  suffered, 
for  that  faith,  loss  of  property,  loss  of  friends,  loss  of  nationality, 
loss  of  life.  But  Ireland,  glorious  Ireland,  has  never  relinquished 
the  faith  which  she  received ;  and  she  is  as  Catholic  to-day  as  in 
the  day  when  she  bowed  her  virgin  head  before  St.  Patrick,  to 
receive  from  him  the  regenerating  waters  of  baptism. 

This,  I  say,  is  the  first  beautiful  light  in  the  character  and 
the  genius  of  the  people  of  Ireland.  Every  other  nation  of  whom 
we  read  received  that  faith  slowly  and  reluctantly.  Every 
other  nation  of  whom  we  read,  demanded  of  their  apostle  the 
seal  of  his  blood,  to  ratify  the  truth  which  he  taught  them. 
Ireland  alone,  amongst  all  the  nations  of  the  earth,  received  that 
faith  willingly  ;  took  it  joyfully  ;  put  it  into  the  hearts  and  into 
the  blood  of  her  children  ;  and  never  caused  her  apostle  one 
tear  of  sorrow,  nor  one  drop  of  his  blood.     More  than  this ; 


528         The  Genius  and  Character  of  the  Irish  People. 

every  nation  on  the  face  of  the  earth  has,  at  sometime  or  other, 
been  misled  into  some  form  of  heresy.  Some  doctrine  was  dis- 
•^  puted  ;  some  discipline  was  denied ;  some  anti-pope  set  up  his 
unholy  pretensions  to  be  the  head  of  the  Catholic  Church,  I 
claim  for  my  nation,  and  for  my  race,  that,  with  a  divine  instinct, 
they  never  yielded  to  any  form  of  heresy ;  they  were  never  yet 
deceived  in  the  instinct  which  drew  them  to  the  true  head  of 
the  Catholic  Church — the  real  Pope  of  Rome. 

In  the  fourteenth  century,  there  was  a  protracted  schism  in 
the  Catholic  Church.  An  anti-pope  raised  himself  up.  France 
was  deceived,  Germany  was  deceived,  Italy  was  deceived,  Eng- 
land was  deceived ;  but  Ireland,  glorious  Ireland,  with  the  true 
instinct  of  a  divinely  inspired  and  guided  people,  clung  to  the 
true  Pontiff,  and  adhered  to  the  true  head  of  the  Catholic 
Church.  Whence  came  this  light'*  Whence  came  the  fidelity 
that  neither  bloodshed  nor  death  could  destroy?  It  came  from 
God ;  it  came  from  that  high  heart  and  high  mind  in  heaven 
that  inspired  Patrick  to  preach  the  gospel  to  the  people  of  Ire- 
land, and  inspired  the  Irish  people  to  receive  the  message  of 
Christian  peace  and  love  from  his  mouth. 

The  next  great  light  of  our  history — the  next  great  point  in 
the  genius  and  character  of  the  Irish  people — is  a  bravery  and 
valor  and  courage  that  have  been  tried  upon  a  thousand  fields  ; 
and,  glory  to  you,  O  Ireland !  Irish  courage  has  never  been 
found  wanting — never !  They  fought  for  a  thousand  years  on 
their  own  soil.  The  cause  was  a  good  one  ;  the  fortune  of  the 
cause  was  bad.  They  were  defeated  and  overpowered  upon  a 
hundred,  yea,  a  thousand  fields ;  but  never — from  the  day  that 
Ireland's  sword  sprang  from  its  scabbard  to  meet  the  first  Dane, 
down  to  the  day  that  the  last  Irish  soldier  perished  on  Vinegar 
Hill — never  has  Ireland  been  dishonored  or  defeated  by  the 
cowardice  of  her  children.  Why?  Whence  comes  this  light 
of  our  people  ?  I  answer,  that  it  comes  from  this — that  Ire- 
land, as  a  nation,  and  Irishmen,  as  a  people,  have  never  yet 
drawn  the  nation's  sword  in  a  bad,  a  treacherous,  or  a  dishon- 
orable cause.  We  have  fought  on  a  thousand  fields  at  home 
and  abroad  ;  we  have  been,  from  time  to  time,  obliged  to  shed 
our  blood  in  a  cause  with  which  we  had  no  sympathy;  but 
Irishmen  have  never  freely  drawn  the  sword,  except  in  the 
sacred  cause  of  God,  of  the  altar  of  God,  and  of  sacred  liberty— 


The  Genius  and  Character  of  the  Irish  People.         529 

the  best  inheritance  of  man.  Search  the  annals  of  the  military- 
history  of  Ireland.  Did  we  fall  back  before  the  Dane,  when, 
for  three  centuries — three  hundred  years — he  poured  in  army 
upon  army  on  Irish  soil  ?  He  endeavored  to  sweep  away  the 
Christ,  and  the  name  of  the  Christ,  from  the  Irish  land.  Did 
we  ever  give  up  the  contest,  or  sheathe  the  sword,  or  say  the 
cause  was  lost?  Never!  England  yielded,  and  admitted  the 
Dane  as  a  conqueror.  France  yielded,  and  admitted  the  Dane 
as  a  ruler  and  a  king  amongst  her  people.  But  Ireland  never — 
never  for  an  instant — yielded ;  and,  upon  that  magnificent 
Good  Friday  morning,  at  Clontarf,  she  drew  the  sword  with 
united  hand,  swept  the  Dane  into  his  own  sea,  and  rid  her  soil 
of  him  forever. 

Ah !  my  friends,  Irishmen,  for  three  hundred  years,  were 
fighting  in  the  cause  of  their  God,  of  their  religion,  and  of  their 
national  liberty.  Then  came  the  invasion  of  the  English.  For 
four  hundred  years  our  people  fought  an  unsuccessful  fight  ;. 
and,  divided  as  they  were,  broken  into  a  thousand  factions,  how" 
could  they  succeed,  when  success  is  promised  only  to  union  as 
a  preliminary  and  a  necessary  condition  ?  They  failed  in  de- 
fending and  asserting  the  nationality  of  Ireland.  At  the  endi 
of  four  hundred  years,  England  declared  that  the  war  was  nO' 
longer  against  Ireland's  nationality,  but  against  Ireland's  Cath- 
olic religion.  And  England  declared  that  the  Irish  people 
must  consent,  not  only  to  be  slaves,  but  to  be  Protestant  slaves.. 
Once  more  the  sword  of  Ireland  came  forth  from  its  scabbard  ;, 
and  this  time  in  the  hands  of  the  nation.  We  have  fought  for 
three  hundred  years ;  and,  five  years  ago,  the  government  and' 
people  of  England  were  obliged  to  acknowledge  that  the  people 
of  Ireland  were  too  strong  for  them.  They  were  conquerors 
on  the  question  of  religion  ;  and  Gladstone  declared  that  the 
Protestant  Church  was  no  longer  the  Church  of  Ireland. 
Whence  came  this  light,  this  magnificent  glory,  that  sheds 
itself  over  the  character  and  the  genius  of  my  people  ?  I  see 
an  Irishman  to-day  in  the  streets  of  an  American  city;  I  see 
him  a  poor  man — a  laborer ;  I  see  him,  perhaps,  clothed  in 
rags  ;  I  see  him,  perhaps,  with  a  little  too  much  drink  in,  and 
forgetful  of  himself;  but,  wherever  I  see  a  true  Irishman,  I  bow 
to  him  in  spirit,  as  the  representative  of  a  race  that  never  yet 
knew  how  to  fly  from  a  foe,  or  to  show  their  backs  to  an  enemy  I 

34 


530         The  Genius  and  Character  of  the  Irish  People, 

Why?  Because  of  their  Catholic  faith,  taught  them  by  St 
Patrick,  which  tells  them  that  it  is  never  lawful  to  draw  the 
sword  in  an  unjust  cause  ;  but  that,  when  the  cause  is  just — 
for  religion,  for  God,  for  freedom — he  is  the  best  Christian 
who  knows  how  to  draw  his  sword,  wave  it  triumphantly 
over  the  field,  or  let  it  fall  in  the  hand  of  a  man  who  knows 
how  to  die  v/ithout  dishonor. 

The  third  light  that  shines  upon  the  bright  side  of  the  history, 
the  character,  and  the  genius  of  my  people,  is  the  light  of  divine 
purity;  the  purity  that  makes  the  Irish  maiden  as  chaste  as  the 
nun  in  her  cloister ;  the  purity  that  makes  the  Irishman  as 
faithful  to  his  wife  as  the  priest  is  to  the  altar  which  he  serves  ; 
the  purity  that  makes  Mormonismand  defilement  of  every  kind 
utter  strangers  to  our  race  and  to  our  people.  I  say,  the  Irish 
woman  is  the  glory  of  Ireland  ;  she  is  the  glory  of  her  country. 
How  beautiful  is  she  in  the  integrity  of  virginal  purity  !  She 
•has  been  taught  it  by  St.  Patrick,  who  held  up  the  Mother  of 
God — the  Virgin  Mother — as  the  very  type  of  Ireland's  woman- 
iiood,  and  of  Ireland's  consecrated  virgins,  as  illustrated  in  the 
lives  and  in  the  characters  of  our  Irish  virgin  saints.  The  Irish- 
man knows  that,  whatever  else  he  may  be  false  to — whatever 
other  obligations  he  may  violate  and  break — there  is  one  bond, 
tied  by  the  hand  of  God  Himself,  before  the  altar ;  sealed  with 
the  sacramental  seal  of  matrimony  ;  signed  with  the  sign  of  the 
cross,  that  no  power  upon  earth,  or  in  hell,  or  in  heaven,  can 
€ver  break  ;  and  that  is  the  sacred  bond  that  binds  him  to  the 
wife  of  his  bosom. 

What  follows  from  this  ?  1  know  that  there  are  men  here 
•who  do  not  believe  in  the  Catholic  religion — that  do  not  believe 
in  the  integrity  of  our  Irish  race — yet  I  ask  these  men  to  explain 
to  me  this  simple  fact :  How  is  it,  how  comes  it  to  pass,  that 
whilst  the  Mormons  are  recruiting  from  every  nation  in  Europe, 
and  from  every  people  in  America,  they  have  only  had  five  Irish 
people  amongst  them  ?  and,  amongst  these  five,  four  arrived  in 
New  York  last  week.  A  reporter  of  the  Herald  newspaper 
met  them,  and  said  to  them :  "  In  the  name  of  God,  are 
you  become  Mormons?  "  They  said,  "Yes,  we  are."  "  Why! 
don't  you  come  from  Ireland  ?  "  The  answer  he  got  was  this  : 
•'  Aweel,  we  cam'  fra'  the  North  of  Ireland,  ye  ken  ;  but  we're 
a'  Scotch  bodies."     Men  and  women  of  Ireland,  to  the  honor 


TJie  Genius  and  Character  of  the  Irish  People.         531 

and  glory  of  our  race,  there  was  only  one  Irishman  among  all  the 
Mormons.  What  brought  him  across  them  ?  I  don't  know.  I 
would  like  to  meet  him,  and  have  half  an  hour's  conversation 
with  him.  Maybe  he  was  like  the  man  who  joined  the  "  Shakers  " 
in  Kentucky.  He  put  on  the  white  hat  and  the  dress,  and  was 
a  most  sanctimonious-looking  fellow.  He  came  to  the  priest, 
with  his  hands  folded  and  eyes  turned  upwards,  quoting  texts 
of  Scripture.  When  the  priest  saw  him,  not  knowing  who  he 
was,  he  thought  he  was  a  Quaker.  But  the  fellow  turned  up 
his  sleeve,  and  showed  the  sign  of  the  Cross,  and  the  Blessed 
Virgin,  and  St.  John  tattooed  on  his  arm.  "  Look  at  that,  your 
reverence,"  said  he.  "  My  God,"  said  the  priest  to  him,  "  aren't 
you  a  Quaker?"  "  Well,  your  reverence,"  said  he,  "  I  am — for 
the  time  being."  "  And  what  made  you  join  them?"  said  the 
priest.  "  Oh,  to  tell  you  God's  truth,  I  went  among  them  to 
see  if  they  were  in  earnest.  Your  reverence,"  said  he,  "  it  is 
bacon  and  cabbage  we  get  every  day,  and  it  agrees  with  me." 

Five  years  ago  the  English  Parliament  made  a  law,  the  most 
infamous,  the  most  unchristian  that  could  be  passed — a  law  that 
a  married  man  could  be  separated  from  the  wife  that  he  married; 
and  the  man  that  was  separated  from  his  wife  could  go  and 
marry  another  woman  ;  and  the  woman  could  go  and  marry 
another  man.  The  English  people  asked  for  that  law,  and 
acted  upon  it.  They  acted  upon  it  so  freely  and  so  willingly 
that  the  Judge  of  the  Divorce  Court  was  actually  killed,  in  a 
few  months,  by  the  large  amount  of  business  that  was  thrown 
on  his  hands.  The  Scotch  people  took  that  law.  But  what 
did  the  Irish  do?  Every  man,  woman,  and  child  in  Ireland 
burst  into  a  loud  fit  of  unextinguishable  laughter.  The 
women  said  :  "  The  Lord  between  us  and  harm  !  "  And  the 
men  said :  "  They've  gone  blind  mad  in  England !  They've 
gone  and  made  a  law,  that  a  fellow  that  marries  a  woman  can 
go  away  and  leave  his  wife,  and  marry  some  one  else." 

The  Irish  character  and  the  genius  of  Ireland  is  vindicated 
in  the  care  that  the  Irish  parent  has  for  the  education  of  his 
children.  He  will  not  abandon  them  to  the  streets,  to  igno- 
rance, and  sin  ;  he  will  not  allow  them  to  go  into  the  schools 
where  they  may  be  taught  to  blaspheme  the  purity  of  Mary, 
and  the  divinity  of  Mary's  Child.  No  matter  what  it  costs 
him,  he  will  insure  to  his  children  the  blessing  of  a  pure  and  a 


552  The  Genius  and  Character  of  the  Irish  People. 

high  Catholic  education.  Look  back  upon  the  history  of  our 
people,  as  taught  to  us  by  the  genius  of  history.  The 
worst  law  that  ever  England  made — the  most  infamous,  the 
most  unchristian — was  the  law  that  was  enacted  during  the 
penal  times ;  by  which  it  was  declared,  that  if  an  Irish  Catho- 
lic father  sent  his  son  or  his  daughter  to  an  Irish  Catholic 
school,  that  man  was  guilty  of  felony,  and  liable  to  transporta- 
tion. Their  soldiers  and  their  policemen  went  through  the 
whole  country  ;  and  the  school-master  had  to  fly,  like  the  priest. 
But  in  the  midst  of  the  danger,  at  the  cost  of  liberty  and  of  life, 
the  Irish  people,  the  parents  of  Ireland,  the  fathers  and  the 
mothers  of  Ireland,  still  had  their  children  educated  ;  and  En- 
gland failed  in  her  diabolical  attempt  to  brutalize  and  degrade 
the  Irish  people  by  ignorance. 

The  next  great  light  thrown  upon  our  history,  and  upon  the 
genius  of  our  national  character,  is  the  love  that  Irishmen,  all  the 
world  over,  preserve  for  the  land  that  bore  them.  The  emi- 
grant comes  from  Ireland  at  a  mature  age ;  he  leaves  his 
native  soil  after  he  has  had  time  enough,  years  enough,  to 
weep  over  her  miseries,  and  perhaps  to  strike  a  blow  in  her  ancient 
and  time-honored  cause.  The  child  comes  from  Ireland  in  his 
mother's  arms.  The  son  of  the  Irish  father  and  the  Irish  moth- 
er is  born  in  America,  far  away  from  the  native  soil  of  his  par- 
ents. But  whether  it  be  the  full-grown  man,  or  whether  it  be 
the  infant  in  arms,  or  whether  it  be  the  native-born  American- 
Irishman — all  unite  in  the  one  grand  sentiment  that  bound  to- 
gether the  bards,  the  sages,  the  saints,  and  the  soldiers  of  Ire- 
land— namely,  the  love,  pure  and  strong,  for  that  ancient  land 
that  bore  them. 

Such  was  the  love  for  Ireland  the  great  saint,  the  blessed 
Columbkille,  felt,  that  he  died,  exclaiming:  "  Oh,  now  I  die  in 
the  hope  of  seeing  my  God,  because  I  have  shut  my  eyes  to  the 
place  that  I  love  most  on  earth — green,  verdant,  and  sweet  Ire- 
land !  "  An  Irish  soldier  fell  dying  on  the  plain  of  Landen. 
When  the  bullet  had  pierced  his  heart,  and  its  blood  was  gush- 
ing forth,  Sarsfield,  the  noble  Irish  soldier,  took  a  handful  of 
his  heart's  blood,  and,  lifting  it  up,  cried  :  "  O  God !  that  this 
blood  was  shed  for  Ireland  !  "  The  love  that  filled  the  lieart  of 
Columbkille,  in  lona  ;  the  love  that  throbbed  in  the  last  move- 
ment of  that  dying  heart  of  Sarsfield — is  the  love  that  to-day 


The  Genius  and  Character  of  the  Irish  People.         533 

binds  the  Irishman  in  America,  in  Austrah'a,  and  all  the  world 
over,  to  the  cherished  land  of  his  birth,  and  makes  him  hope 
for  high  things,  and  do  daring  and  valiant  deeds  for  the  ancient 
land  of  Ireland.  Whence  comes  this  love  for  our  native  land? 
I  answer,  this  light  of  our  genius  and  of  our  character  comes  tO 
us  from  the  faith  which  St.  Patrick  taught  us.  The  Catholic 
faith  teaches  every  man  that,  after  his  God,  he  is  bound  to  love 
the  land  of  his  birth — his  country.  The  Catholic  Church 
teaches  every  man  that,  when  the  hour  of  danger — danger  to 
his  national  liberty,  danger  to  his  people,  and  to  his  nation — 
comes,  then  every  man  is  bound  to  gird  on  the  sword,  and  to 
draw  it  in  the  sacred  name  of  God,  and  of  country. 

The  last  of  Ireland's  saints  was  the  holy  and  canonized  St. 
Laurence  O'Toole,  who  was  Archbishop  of  Dublin  when  Ire- 
land was  first  invaded  by  the  Anglo-Norman.  If  we  believe 
Leland,  the  ancient  historian,  the  man  who  was  ordained  as  a 
monk  in  Glendalough  ;  the  man  who  was  the  model  bishop,  and 
Archbishop  of  Dublin,  came  forth  and  girded  on  his  sword  jii 
front  of  the  Irish  army,  before  the  English  invaders.  In  the 
name  of  the  Blessed  Trinity,  he  drew  his  sword  in  the  sacred 
cause  of  Ireland.  In  him  patriotism — the  love  of  fatherland — 
is  canonized,  as  well  as  the  monk  and  the  archbishop. 

One  more  light  in  the  bright  side  of  our  character,  and  I  have 
done  with  this  portion  of  my  address.  The  Irish  people,  irt 
their  genius,  in  their  national  character,  have  kept  up  under  the 
direst  persecutions.  Never  did  a  people  suffer  so  much,  and 
still  keep  up  their  natural  humor,  splendid  temper,  and  height 
of  spirit.  If  any  other  nation  on  the  face  of  the  earth  had  gone 
through  three  hundred  years  of  incessant  war,  four  hundred 
years  of  national  invasion,  three  hundred  years,  again,  of  religious 
persecution,  the  heart  and  the  spirit  of  the  people  would  have 
been  broken  ;  and  no  smile  would  have  been  seen  on  the  face  of 
the  nation.  What  do  we  find?  In  spite  of  all  he  has  suffered  ; 
in  spite  of  all  the  persecution  that  has  been  heaped  upon  him  ; 
the  Irishman  of  to-day  has  as  light  a  heart,  as  bright  an  eye, 
and  is  as  nimble  of  heel  in  the  dance,  as  any  man  on  the  face  of 
God's  earth.  Give  him  an  opportunity,  and  he  will  give  you  ^ 
stroke  of  wit,  such  as  you  never  heard  before.  There  was  a  poof 
fellow  down  in  my  native  county  of  Galway — I  daresay  some  of 
you  know  the  place — he  was  standing  in  his  corduroy  breeches 


534         The  Genius  and  Character  of  the  Irish  People. 

and  gray  stockings,  and  the  brogues  that  he  wore  were  not 
worth  mentioning,  because  they  had  neither  soles  nor  uppers. 
As  he  stood  in  the  door  of  his  little  cabin,  the  pig  was  inside, 
playing  with  the  children.  An  Englishman  was  passing,  and 
saw  the  pig  in  the  man's  house  ;  and  he  said  to  him  :  "  Now, 
my  good  man,  why  do  you  allow  that  pig  in  your  house  ?  It 
does  not  look  quite  right."  "Why,"  says  the  Irishman,  "has 
cot  the  house  every  accommodation  that  any  reasonable  pig 
would  require?"  Oh  !  the  light  heart  of  the  Irish  race!  If  on 
this  platform  there  were  now  an  Irish  piper,  or  an  Irish  fiddler, 
and  he  struck  up  an  Irish  jig,  do  you  imagine,  priest  and  friar 
as  I  am,  that  I  would  not  feel  the  heels  going  under  me  ? 

Whence  comes  the  light  foot,  the  bright  eye,  the  brave  heart? 
Ah  !  it  comes  from  the  religion  that  taught  them  that,  no  matter 
how  hard  the  world  went  with  them,  the  hand  of  God  was  with 
them,  and  Jesus  Christ  and  His  Virgin  Mother,  who  loved  them; 
no  matter  how  drear  their  lot  in  this  world  was,  their  relig-ion 
(Opened  before  them  a  vista  of  a  magnificent  and  eternal  future 
of  happiness  in  the  next  world.  Hence  it  is  that  these,  amongst 
many  other  traits  and  characteristics  in  the  genius  of  the  Irish 
people,  are  revealed  to  us  with  the  light  that  always  comes 
from  above.  The  Catholic  never  changed  his  religion  in  Ireland, 
because  he  was  a  Catholic,  and  the  Catholic  religion  does  not 
change.  The  Catholic  Irishman  always  knew  how  to  die  upon 
the  field  of  honor,  because  his  religion  taught  him  that  the 
noblest  death  that  man  can  die,  is  to  die  for  his  God,  and  for  a 
noble  and  just  cause.  The  Catholic  Irishman  is  as  faithful  as  the 
needle  to  the  pole-star,  to  the  wife  of  his  bosom ;  the  Catholic 
virgin,  as  pure  as  the  unstained  snow  ;  the  Catholic  mother,  bear- 
ing upon  her  brow  the  mingled  beauty  of  maternity  and  virginity^ 
is  a  model  for  the  women  of  the  world.  And  why  ?  Because  their 
Catholic  faith  taught  them  the  love  of  the  mother  in  the  vir- 
ginity of  the  Virgin  Mary,  who  brought  forth  Jesus  Christ. 

Finally,  the  Catholic  Irishman  loves  his  native  land,  because 
he  knows  that  land  is  the  most  glorious  spot  on  earth — with  a 
faith  producing  the  deepest  holiness  ;  a  learning  brought  to  its 
highest  pitch  ;  a  bravery  never  disputed,  constituting  the  high- 
est nobility  of  a  race  and  of  a  people.  And  the  Catholic  Irish- 
man is  light-hearted,  because  he  says :  "  I  may  be  hungry 
to-day  ;  I  may  be  tired  to-day  ;  I  may  be  cold  to-day  ;  but  my 


The  Genius  and  Character  of  the  Irish  People.         535 

God  is  preparing  for  me  a  kingdom  where  neither  hunger  shall 
pinch,  nor  labor  weary,  nor  cold  benumb."  Now,  my  friends, 
with  this  light  and  beauty  in  our  national  character,  what  are 
the  shades,  or  the  shadows  and  defects  of  our  people  ?  You 
may  ask  me  what  they  are.  What  are  the  shadows  of  the  Irish 
people  ?  I  think  I  know  my  people  as  well  as  any  man 
alive. 

I  remember  a  time  in  my  life  when  not  one  word  of  the  Eng- 
lish I  now  speak  to  you  was  on  these  lips,  but  only  the  sweet 
old  rolling  Celtic  tongue  that  my  father  and  my  mother  spoke 
before  me.  I  have  lived  for  years  in  Ireland.  I  have  studied 
the  character  of  my  people,  not  with  eyes  blinded  by  the  prej- 
udices of  an  amateur  critic,  but  with  the  skilled  eyes  of  a  Cath- 
olic priest.  I  have  seen  the  dark  side  as  well  as  the  bright  side 
of  our  national  character.  I  will  not  give  to  you  my  own  ex- 
perience, for  I  have  learned  so  to  love  my  people  and  my  race 
that  I  cannot  find  it  in  my  heart  to  speak  ill  of  them.  I  will 
let  the  press  of  England  do  it.  I  will  let  our  enemies  tell  you 
and  me  what  our  national  faults  are.  And  what  are  they? 
The  first  thing  of  all  that  the  English  press  accuses  us  of  as  Irish- 
men, is,  that  we  are  an  improvident,  reckless  lot.  They  say : 
"  Look  at  the  German  ;  he  is  not  a  year  in  America  before  he 
has  a  couple  of  houses,  and  a  couple  of  lots  ;  but  look  at  the 
Irishman ;  he  settles  down  in  a  tenement  house,  and  earns, 
perhaps,  five  dollars  a  week  ;  he  gives  one  dollar  to  the  priest, 
three  more  go  for  whiskey,  and  one  to  the  wife."  They  say 
we  have  no  prudence ;  we  don't  know  how  to  make  eighteen- 
pence  out  of  ninepence  soon  enough.  I  grant  it.  We  Irish- 
men are  a  spendthrift  and  reckless  race.  I  ask  you,  men  of 
Ireland,  who  made  us  so  improvident  ?  Who  made  us  so  im- 
prudent, so  reckless?  Ah!  was  it  not  the  cruel,  blood-stained 
government  of  England,  that  robbed  us  of  every  penny  of  our 
possessions  ?  What  makes  a  man  reckless  and  imprudent  so 
soon  as  to  deprive  him  of  that  which  is  his  own  and  shut  out 
every  hope  for  the  future?  What  hope  had  the  Irishman  at 
home?  He  tilled  his  field  and  drained  it  ;  he  made  a  piece  of 
bog  choice  arable  land  ;  but  the  moment  it  was  worth  twice  its 
former  value,  the  landlord  turned  him  out,  with  his  wife  and  his 
children,  to  die  like  dogs  in  the  ditch,  and  gave  his  farm  to 
some  other  person.     What  wonder  that  we  spend  our  money 


53^         The  Genius  and  Character  of  the  Irish  People. 

lavishly  and  recklessly,  when  we  have  not,  for  seven  hundred 
years,  had  anything  left  by  the  government  worth  an  Irishman's 
while  to  live,  to  save,  to  be  prudent  for,  in  the  land  of  his  birth! 
The  English  press  says  :  "  The  Irish  race  are  drunkards,  too 
fond  of  drink  ;  they  spend  all  their  money  in  drink.  Nothing 
but  whiskey!  "  Now,  I  answer,  with  my  experience  of  Irish- 
men, that  any  man  who  accuses  our  Irish  race  and  our  Irish 
people  of  being  greater  drunkards  than  any  other  people  tells  a 
lie.  If  any  man  said  to  me  here  such  a  thing,  I  would  say: 
**  You  lie,  and  I  will  prove  it."  Take,  for  instance,  the 
Scotch.  What  does  their  own  poet  tell  us  of  their  drinking  ? 
He  says  : 

"  Willie  brewed  a  peck  o'  maut, 

And  Rob  and  Allan  came  to  see." 

They  sat  down  at  nine  o'clock ;  and  they  drank  raw  whiskey 
until  six  o'clock  in  the  morning  ;  and  then  they  were  not  drunk  ; 
for  he  goes  on  to  say — 

"  '  We  are  na  fu',  we're  na  that  fu' ; 

But  just  a  wee  drap  in  our  ee  ; 
The  cock  may  craw,  the  day  may  daw', 

But  aye  we'll  taste  the  barley  bree.'  " 

I  would  like  to  know  if  any  of  you  know  an  Irishman  who 
was  able  to  drink  raw  whiskey  from  nine  o'clock  at  night  till 
six  in  the  morning  and  not  fall  under  the  table.  No  enemy  of 
ours  ever  yet  alleged  that  we  were  gluttons.  Thanks  be  to  God 
for  that !  The  charge  of  eating  too  much,  whatever  comes  of 
our  drinking  too  much,  was  never  made  against  the  Irish  peo- 
ple. The  Irishman  is  a  small  eater,  my  friends.  There  was  an 
Irish  gentleman  by  the  name  of  Colonel  Martin,  of  Ballinahinch. 
He  was  over  in  England,  and  made  a  bet  with  an  Englishman 
about  this.  The  Englishman  said  to  him — he  was  a  member  of 
Parliament  also — "  You  Irish  are  not  worth  anything ;  you  are 
not  able  to  eat  as  well  as  our  people."  The  Irish  gentleman 
foolishly  said  :  "  I  will  bet  you  five  hundred  pounds  that  I  can 
bring  you  a  man  from  my  estate  who  can  eat  more  than  any 
Englishman  you  bring."  The  Englishman  took  the  bet  will- 
ingly. The  Irishman  was  brought  over;  the  Englishman  also 
appeared — a  fine,  big,  strapping  man,  with  a  mouth  reaching 
from  ear  to  ear,  and  a  great  long  body  with  short  legs — plenty 
of  room  ;  and  he  did  not  eat  anything  for  two  days,  to  put  him- 


The  Genius  and  Character  of  the  Irish  People.         53/ 

self  \u  trim.  The  poor  Irishman  was  brought  in — a  ploughman, 
with  the  fine  bloom  of  health  upon  his  face — as  well  able  to 
give  an  account  of  a  sceagh  of  potatoes,  with  a  "  griskin,"  or  a 
bit  of  bacon,  as  the  best  of  you;  but  he  was  no  match  for  the 
Englishman.  They  sat  down  to  the  work  of  eating.  They 
were  given  roast  beef  to  eat.  The  Englishman  stood  behind  his 
man's  chair,  and  the  Irish  gentleman  stood  behind  his  man's  chair, 
looking  at  their  eating.  After  a  while,  the  Irishman  had  got  his 
fill,  while  the  Englishman  was  only  beginning  to  eat  in  earnest. 
There  was  a  turkey  on  the  spit  roasting  for  the  gentleman's  din- 
ner. The  Irish  gentleman  saw  that  his  man  was  failing,  and  he 
spoke  to  him  in  Irish,  "  Michael,"  he  said,  "  what  do  you 
think  ?  "  And  the  man  replied,  in  the  same  tongue :  "  Oh,  mas- 
ter, I'm  full  to  the  windpipe!  "  As  he  spoke  in  Irish,  the  En- 
glishman did  not  understand  him,  and  he  asked  Martin  :  "  What 
does  the  fellow  ^-ay  ?"  "  He  says,"  replied  Martin,  "  that  he  is 
just  beginning  to  get  an  appetite ;  and  he  wants  you  to  give 
him  that  turkey  there,  for  his  dinner,  after  he  is  done."  "Con- 
found the  b'ackguard,"  says  the  Englishman,  "  he  shall  never 
get  a  bit  of  \\.     I  give  up  the  bet  !  " 

But  if  Iri-hmen  are  fond  of  a  glass  of  whiskey,  who  is  to  blame 
for  it?  • .  '  forbid  that  I  should  excuse  it.  I  hold  up  my  hand 
against  '>,  ?  home  and  abroad.  I  say  to  every  Irishman  that 
comes  \  I  me,  "  Brother,  be  sober,  and  you  will  be  a  pros- 
perous :  "  I  admire  your  city  of  Boston.  I  say  it  here 
publicl;. .  imire  the  legislation  that  puts  it  out  of  the  power 
of  a  ma  be  a  drunkard,  because  drunkenness  is  the  worst 

degr    '  jf  man,  and  the  worst  crime  we  can  commit  against 

God  '  we  find  Irishmen  here  and  there  taking,  as  they 

say,  u  ibleful  too  much,"  who  is  to  blame   for  it  ?     Why 

did  Et  .,  .  d  rob  him?  Why  did  England  persecute  him? 
Why  did  "England  leave  him  without  a  foot  of  land  to  stand 
upon  and  '.all  his  own  in  the  land  that  bore  him ?  Why  did 
Ei>g'  it  off  every  hope  from  him?     Do  that  to   most  men, 

11  find  that  they  will  turn  for  comfort  to  the  bottle. 

they  say,   "  Irishmen   are  a  very  revengeful  and  a 

tful  people."     The  critics  of  the   English  press  say: 

u  cannot  trust  the  word  of  an    Irishman  ;  he  will  tell 

le  when   he   says  he  is  telling  you  the  truth."     I  answer, 

4}..      ,  Who  is  to  blame  for  the  lying  and  deceit,  if  it  exists  in 


53^         The  Genius  and  Character  of  the  Irish  People. 

the  Irish  character  ?  Is  it  a  heavy  crime  for  a  heart-broken, 
persecuted  people  to  tell  a  lie  to  the  man  who  is  made  a  master 
over  them,  from  whom  they  expect  no  mercy  ?  The  man  that 
will  soonest  try  to  cover  his  fault  with  a  lie,  is  the  man  that 
knows  there  is  no  allowance  made  for  him  or  his  faults.  There- 
fore, I  deny  that  we  are  a  lying  people  ;  and  even  if  it  were  true,  I 
say  that  the  seven  hundred  years  of  English  rule  ought  to  have 
made  us  the  most  deceitful  people  on  the  face  of  the  earth. 
They  say  we  are  revengeful.  If  you  travel  in  England  you  will 
hear  in  the  railway  carriage,  from  the  Englishman,  that  Ireland 
is  a  most  awful  country  ;  the  Irish  are  a  most  dreadful  people  ; 
that  if  you  go  out  there  to  take  an  evening  walk,  suddenly  a 
man  will  come  out  of  the  bushes,  present  a  blunderbuss  point- 
blank  at  you,  and  "  blow  you  to  blazes." 

There  has  been  a  great  deal  of  crime,  in  the  way  of  outrages 
against  life,  in  Ireland.  There  is  no  doubt  about  it ;  there  has 
been,  for  a  Christian  and  a  Catholic  people,  too  much.  But,  my 
friends,  I  lay  down.  First,  this  undisputed  fact,  that  there  are 
more  murders  committed  in  the  city  of  London  in  one  month, 
than  there  are  in  Ireland  in  three  years.  Secondly,  again,  I  say, 
if  the  people  take  "the  wild  justice  of  revenge,"  if  they  go  out 
and  take  the  law  into  their  own  hands,  who  is  to  blame  for  it? 
Ah  !  well  they  know  who  is  to  blame,  when  that  Government 
has  allowed  a  "  crowbar  brigade  "  to  uproot  the  homesteads  of 
our  people,  to  hunt  them  from  their  dwellings  like  wild  beasts, 
and  leave  them  to  perish  on  the  road-side,  or  in  the  workhouse, 
or  else  to  consign  them  to  the  hard  fate  of  the  moneyless  emi- 
grant coming  to  a  foreign  shore. 

The  Irish  landlord  comes  to  the  door  of  an  Irish  tenant,  and 
says  to  the  man,  "  Go  out !  "  His  family  have,  perhaps,  lived 
for  three  hundred  years  under  that  roof;  and  they  have  to  go 
out.  He  says  to  the  woman  lying,  perhaps,  in  her  confinement, 
or  her  fever,  "  Go  out !  "  He  says  to  the  little  children,  "  Go 
out !  "  with  not  a  morsel  of  food,  or  an  article  of  clothing,  from 
under  their  roof,  in  the  midst  of  the  bitter  winter.  xA-nd  the  Irish 
father  clubs  his  gun,  and  dashes  the  tyrant's  brains  out.  I  say, 
again — God  forbid  that  I  should  justify  them  ;  God  forbid  that 
I  should  encourage  them  ;  but,  as  a  priest,  as  a  theologian,  as  an 
Irishman,  I  stand  here  and  say,  if  ever  there  was  a  people  who 
were  guiltless  of  blood  shed  in  murder,  it  is  the  people  of  Ireland, 


The  Genius  and  Character  of  the  Irish  People.         539 

Now,  my  friends,  one  word,  and  I  am  done ;  because  you  can 
easily  perceive  I  am  beginning  to  be  a  little  tired.  You  have 
seen  the  lights,  you  have  seen  the  shadows,  of  the  Irish  charac- 
ter. The  lights,  I  have  endeavored  to  prove  to  you,  come  from 
above,  the  shadows  from  below.  Twenty  years  ago,  Ireland, 
persecuted,  starving,  "the  Niobe  of  all  the  nations,"  turned  her 
eyes  westward,  and  with  that  vivid  Irish  imagination  which  has 
never  failed  to  realize  the  beautiful  and  the  true,  beheld  the 
magnificent  shores  of  Columbia.  She  sent  her  people  here. 
Eight  millions  of  them  are  on  American  soil,  the  bone  and 
sinew,  the  brain  and  intellect,  and  the  energy  of  this  land. 
The  lights  that  came  to  them  from  above,  they  have  brought 
with  them  :  their  Catholic  faith,  their  Catholic  bravery,  their 
Catholic  fidelity,  their  Catholic  light  heart,  and  good-humor. 
All  these  they  have  brought  with  tli£m,  because  it  shone  from 
above ;  and  no  man  could  take  it  from  them.  The  shadows  in 
their  character — the  deceitfulness,  the  drunkenness,  the  improvi- 
dence, the  revenge,  if  such  there  be — that  came  from  the  mis- 
government  under  which  they  lived  ;  the  cause  of  them  is  re- 
moved. England  has  no  longer  any  claim  upon  any  Irishman 
here,  except  myself.  You  are  all  having  the  glory  of  being  free 
men  on  a  free  soil.  You  have  amongst  the  men  of  this  world 
the  first,  the  grandest  title  that  man  can  have  under  heaven  to- 
day, the  title  of  the  Catholic  American  citizen.  The  grandest 
shadow  that  can  fall  upon  man  to-day,  is  the  shadow  of  the  Cross 
of  Christ  ;  and  the  next  greatest  shadow  is  that  of  the  "  Stars 
and  Stripes  "  of  free  America.     These  are  yours. 

If  there  be  any  traditions  or  traces  of  improvidence,  they 
should  not  be  here.  We  were  improvident  at  home,  because 
we  had  nothing  to  hope  for,  nothing  to  live  for.  But  oh  !  I  be- 
hold the  glorious  future,  as  America's  imperial  hand  opens  for 
every  citizen  her  liberties.  No  trace  of  slavery  is  on  this  soil  ; 
no  penal  law,  to  condemn  you  to  ignorance  or  to  slavery ;  no 
sceptred  monarch  to  tell  you,  at  the  peril  of  your  life,  to  think 
as  he  does,  or  to  die ;  no  Harry  the  Eighth  to  tell  you,  if  you 
are  Catholics,  he  will  destroy  you  ;  and  that,  in  order  to  live,  you 
will  have  to  forego  the  faith  you  have  held  for  more  than  a 
thousand  years.  No  !  America  hears  no  tyrant  footstep  on  her 
soil,  and  hearkens  to  the  voice  of  no  man  who  is  oppressing  and 
enslaving  his  fellow-men.     Long  may  she  wave  the  emblems  of 


540         The  Genius  and  Character  of  the  Irish  People. 

hope  and  of  freedom  over  a  country  vast  in  its  proportions, 
terrible  in  its  power,  strong  in  its  genius,  glorious  in  its  magnifi- 
cence, and  in  the  liberty  and  the  freedom  which  she  grants  to 
all  men. 

The  Irishman  in  America  has  what  he  never  had  at  home ; 
he  has  the  genius  of  freedom  around  him.  He  is  able  to  ex- 
pand his  glorious  Celtic  bosom,  to  breathe  an  air  untainted  with 
any  tyranny.  I  am  a  "  loyal  "  British  subject,  because  I  am  a 
priest,  and  the  Church  teaches  loyalty  and  peace ;  but  I  confess 
to  you  that  never,  never,  for  twenty  years,  have  I  spoken  in  Ire- 
land, as  I  feel  I  can  speak  in  America.  I  can't  tell  you  what  it 
is  ;  I  only  know  that  it  is  so.  I  feel  like  a  blind  man  when  his 
eyes  are  first  opened,  and  he  beholds  the  light ;  I  feel  like  the 
manacled  man  when  his  chains  first  fall  from  his  limbs,  and  he 
knows  that  he  can  use  his  arms ;  I  feel  like  the  worshipper  of 
Freedom  when  he  first  beholds  his  goddess,  and  kneels  before 
her.  America  !  glorious  America  !  The  first  land  of  freedom 
that  struck  every  chain  off  the  Irish  hand  that  is  laid  upon  her 
soil.     Every  shadow  of  the  past  is  gone. 

Why,  then,  should  not  the  confusion  that  sprang  from  these 
shadows  and  this  misgovernment  be  gone?  Why  should  not  the 
Irishman  in  America  be  provident,  prudent,  thrifty,  industrious? 
Thanks  be  to  God  !  here  he  has  something  to  live  for  ;  some- 
thing to  hope  for,  for  himself  and  for  his  children  after  him. 
Why  should  not  the  Irishman  in  America  be  sober,  and  not  take 
refuge  in  the  consolations  of  the  bottle?  He  has  a  glorious  land 
before  him,  bright  skies  above  him,  a  splendid  liberty  around  him, 
a  high  scope  for  the  intelligence  with  which  God  has  so  large- 
ly endowed  our  people.  Why  should  he  not  be  a  king  among 
men,  a  leader  of  men  ?  Place,  power,  influence,  civic  and  mili- 
tary glory  are  before  him.  Why  should  he  not  be  in  the  fore- 
most ranks  of  the  army  of  America?  Was  he  not  foremost  on 
the  bloody  slopes  of  Fredericksburg,  when  the  soil  was  steeped 
in  Irish  blood,  aad  the  bodies  of  Irish  soldiers  covered  its 
hills  as  thick  as  the  leaves  in  Vallambrosa?  He  was  in  the 
front  ranks  behind  the  ramparts  of  New  Orleans,  with  Jackson, 
when,  as  the  yellow  grain  falls  before  the  mower's  scythe,  so 
fell  the  old  enemy,  the  red-coated  soldiery  of  Britain,  before  the 
terrible  fire  of  the  American  soldiery.  Why  should  not  the 
Irishman  in  America  live  in  peace  and  fellow.ship  with  his  fel- 


The  Genius  and  Character  of  the  Irish  People.        541 

low-men  ?  Are  they  not  the  first  to  vindicate  the  freedom 
that  they  have  given  him?  Why  should  not  the  Irishman  in 
America  be  the  first  man  in  the  state?  Has  he  not  genius? 
American  history,  as  well  as  Irish  history,  will  tell  you. 
Whatever  else  Almighty  God  deprived  us  of,  Ke  gave  us  a 
large  amount  of  brains.  Has  he  not  energy?  The  cities  and 
the  railways  of  America  attest  the  work  of  the  Irishman's 
hand,  and  the  Irish  energy  that  triumphs  beyond  any  other 
race  upon  the  earth.  Has  he  not  virtue?  His  religion  will 
answer  for  him,  if  he  will  only  come  within  the  shadow  of 
her  walls.  The  principle  of  unity,  namely,  the  unity  of  faith, 
is  his;  the  principle  of  conjugal  fidelity  is  his,  also.  When 
his  race  shall  be  educated  in  the  land,  the  Irishman  need 
only  ask  to  be  allowed  a  generation  to  show  the  strength, 
the  energy,  the  prolific  grandeur,  and  the  purity  of  his  race, 
which  his  Catholic  faith  has  preserved  for  him. 

Therefore,  let  me  conclude.  In  Ireland  we  had  little  hope. 
Our  foes  make  laws  for  us.  If  they  be  just  laws  they  destroy 
them  in  detail.  They  declared  that  the  Protestant  Church  was 
at  an  end ;  but  they  gave  nearly  every  penny  of  the  money  to 
that  Church  ;  not  one  farthing  to  the  Catholics.  They  declared 
that  the  Irish  farmer  has  the  right  to  his  land ;  yet  the  "  crow- 
bar brigade  "  is  at  work  in  the  land  to-day.  We  had  little  hope. 
Why?  Because  our  laws  are  made  by  an  enemy,  and  when  the 
enemy  makes  the  laws,  they  will  press  upon  you  as  hard  as  they 
can.  Well,  Ireland  has  but  little  to  hope  for  at  home.  But 
what  are  our  hopes  here?  I  admire  the  grandeur  of  the  pros- 
pect when  Ireland  looks  across  to  the  West,  and  beholds  her 
children  in  great  Columbia.  There,  when  through  the  faith 
that  they  brought  with  them  from  the  old  land — the  faith  for 
which  their  fathers  died — when  through  the  sanctity  of  that 
faith,  which  enabled  them  for  three  hundred  years  to  be  a  na- 
tion of  martyrs  as  well  as  of  saints  and  patriots,  if  they  will 
only  give  fair  play  to  it  by  sobriety,  industry,  peacefulness, 
using  their  brains  and  the  talents  that  God  has  given  them — 
then  behold  before  you  the  prospect. 

I  lift  up,  as  it  were,  the  veil  of  the  future.  I  look  with  an 
anxious,  longing  eye.  What  do  I  behold  ?  I  may  be  in  my 
grave,  yet  it  will  come  !  it  will  come  !  What  do  I  behold  ?  I 
may  be  sleeping  beneath  the  shamrocks,  yet  it  will  come  !     All 


542  The  Genius  and  Character  of  the  Irish  People. 

hail,  Irish  Columbia !  All  hail  the  great  and  mighty  power 
that  I  see  advancing  over  the  ocean's  waves,  in  an  unconquera- 
ble flotilla  !  Genius  is  there  ;  bravery  is  there  ;  power  is  there  ; 
the  fair  figure  of  Mary  the  Virgin  is  hanging  at  the  mast-head  ! 
They  come !  they  come  to  save  Ireland,  our  ancient  Ireland  ; 
and  she  no  longer  shall  be  enslaved.  A  great  and  mighty  race 
have  risen,  to  elevate  her,  and  to  place  her  upon  a  high  throne 
among  the  nations  of  the  earth. 


DIVINE   FAITH  THE  PRINCIPLE  OF 
CHRISTIAN  LIFE. 


[Sermon  preached  in  St.  Paul's  Church,  Brooklyn,  on  Sunday  morning,  October 
20th,  1872.] 

"  As  He  was  speaking  these  things  unto  them,  behold,  a  certain  ruler  came  up  and 
adored  Him,  saying  :  Lord,  my  daugliter  is  even  now  dead  ;  but  come,  lay  Thy 
hand  upon  her,  and  she  shall  live.  And  Jesus,  rising  up,  followed  him,  with  His 
disciples.  And,  behold,  a  woman,  who  was  troubled  with  an  issue  of  blood,  twelve 
years,  came  behind  Him  and  touched  the  hem  of  His  garment.  For  she  said  within 
herself.  If  I  sliall  touch  only  His  garment,  I  shall  be  healed.  But  Jesus,  turning 
about,  and  seeing  her,  said,  Be  of  good  heart,  daughter,  thy  faith  hath  made  thee 
whole.  And  the  woman  was  made  whole  from  that  hour.  And  wlien  Jesus  was  come 
into  the  house  of  the  ruler,  and  saw  the  minstrels  and  the  multitude  making  a  rout. 
He  said.  Give  place  ;  for  the  girl  is  not  dead,  but  sleepeth.  And  they  laughed  Him 
to  scorn.  And  when  the  multitude  was  put  forth,  lie  went  in  and  took  her  by  the 
hand,  and  the  maid  arose.  And  the  fame  hereof  went  abroad  into  all  that  country." 
— Matthew  ix.  18. 

HE  two  miracles  which  are  commemorated  in  this  day's 
Gospel,  alike  invite  our  attention  to  the  great  virtue 
of  faith.  Mark,  dearly  beloved  brethren,  the  ruler 
came,  with  a  sorrowing,  broken  heart,  to  our  Lord. 
His  daughter,  a  beautiful  young  maiden,  was  dead.  The  father 
saw  her  dead  ;  the  light  was  gone  from  her  eyes ;  her  heart  was 
stilled,  so  that  it  beat  no  more.  The  man  looked  upon  his  be- 
loved child  ;  when,  suddenly,  a  thought  came  into  his  mind : 
"  There  is  One  whom  I  know  to  be  the  Lord  of  life  and  death. 
I  will  go  and  ask  Him,  that  He  may  raise  my  child  from  death." 
Accordingly  he  went  out,  looking  for  our  Lord  ;  and  the  mo- 
ment he  met  Him,  he  knelt  down,  first  of  all,  and  adored  Him. 
Why  did  he  do  this?  Is  it  lawful  for  a  man  to  kneel  down  and 
adore  his  fellow-man?  No!  Is  it  lav/ful  for  a  man  to  kneel 
down  and  adore  the  angels  of  God?     No!     Is  it  lawful  for  you 


544         Divine  Faith  the  Principle  of  Christian  Life. 

or  me  to  kneel  down  and  adore  the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary,  the 
Mother  of  God?  No!  Adoration  belongs  to  God  alone;  and 
we  cannot  take  these  words,  "  he  adored  him,"  to  mean  any 
other  sense  of  the  words  than  that  the  ruler  knew  that,  although 
he  only  saw  a  man,  that  man  was  God — that  he  was  in  the  pres- 
ence of  God,  and  "  he  knelt  down  and  adored  "  his  God.  How 
did  he  know  this  ?  He  only  saw  the  man,  Jesus  Christ ;  he 
only  saw  the  man  whom  the  Pharisees  were  watching,  whom  the 
priests  were  plotting  against ; — a  man  that  was  despised  and 
hated  by  the  highest  men.  And  yet  this  man  came  and  adored 
Him,  because  he  had  faith ;  and  faith  means  the  argument  of 
things  that  appear  not; — faith  means  the  knowledge  of  things 
that  eye  hath  not  seen,  that  are  not  comprehended  by  the  mind. 
Faith  means  more  than  this,  the  actual  thought,  acknowledging, 
kneeling  down,  and  adoring  Jesus  Christ  wherever  He  is. 

Then  the  woman  came,  and  said  in  her  own  heart — wasted 
as  she  was  by  an  issue  of  blood  for  twelve  years ;  drained  of  all 
her  life-blood  ;  languid  even  unto  death  ;  incurable  ;  abandoned 
by  all  human  aid — the  moment  she  saw  our  Lord  passing  she 
said  :  "  Oh  !  if  I  could  only  touch  the  hem  of  His  garment,  I 
know  that  I  should  be  healed  !  "  Faintly,  with  a  great  effort, 
she  advanced  ;  and  the  multitude  mercifully  let  her  approach. 
Flinging  herself  upon  the  ground,  she  just  touched  her  Saviour's 
robe  ;  and  that  moment  she  was  healed.  He  turned  towards 
her,  and  said  :  "  Be  of  good  heart,  daughter ;  thy  faith  hath 
made  thee  whole." 

Now,  my  dearly  beloved  brethren,  it  is  to  this  great  subject 
of  faith  that  I  invite  your  attention  to-day.  And  why?  Because 
we  live  in  an  age  that  ignores  and  despises  this  divine,  theolog- 
ical virtue.  Because  we  live  in  an  age  and  amongst  men  who 
tell  us  that  if  we  have  prudence,  industry,  sobriety,  truthful- 
ness, and  all  the  other  manly  virtues,  that  these  are  enough, 
and  that  it  does  not  matter  much,  after  all,  what  a  man 
believes — that  his  faith  is  of  little  or  no  account — provided  he 
has  the  virtues  that  will  enable  him  to  get  on  well  in  this  world, 
and  be  an  ornament  to  society.  This  is  the  cant  of  our  day  ; 
this  is  the  language  which  is  imputed  in  opposition  to  the  Cath- 
olic Church.  For  instance,  in  the  system  of  education  in  the 
public  schools,  the  State  says:  "I  will  teach  the  children.  I 
will  make  smart,  clever  men  of  them.     I  will  teach  them  to  he 


Divine  Faith  the  Prijiciple  of  Christian  Life.  545 

honest  and  truthful.  I  will  teach  them  to  be  upright  and  manly. 
I  will  teach  them  to  be  prudent,  industrious  men  of  business. 
But,  as  for  faith  or  religion,  I  have  no  particular  form  of  faith. 
I  will  not  teach  them  that.  But,  after  all,  it  does  not  matter ; 
it  is  a  matter  of  very  secondary  importance."  This  is  the  spirit 
of  our  day,  that  has  made,  inside  the  Catholic  Church,  that  tre- 
mendous evil  which  is  staring  us  in  the  face,  of  thousands  of 
Catholics  who  say  :  "  I  have  the  faith.  I  profess  the  faith.  I 
am  a  Catholic  to  the  backbone ;  "  yet  they  do  not  act  up  to  it. 
Ask  that  man  when  he  was  last  at  confession — when  did  he  go 
to  communion  ?  "  Oh,  it  is  not  necessary  !  "  It  is  years  since 
he  was  at  the  sacraments.  "  I'll  go  when  I  am  dying."  They 
do  not  act  up  to  it.  With  them  it  is  a  profession,  nothing 
more.  They  believe.  Yes,  they  have  the  faith  ;  but  that  faith 
is  not  the  principle  of  their  lives.  Therefore,  the  error  which, 
outside  the  Church,  despises  the  principles  of  faith  is  found  in  the 
Church  in  practical  contempt  of  the  practices  of  faith. 

To  such  as  those,  then,  I  wish  to  speak.  What  is  the  faith' 
among  men  that  have  it  or  desire  to  have  it  ?  St.  Paul  lays 
down  this  great  truth — that  "  faith  is  the  principle  of  Christian 
life."  Again  he  says,  man  lives  by  faith — that  faith  is  the  gov- 
erning power  of  his  actions,  giving  tone  to  all  the  actions  of  his 
life  ;  strengthening  his  motives,  influencing  him  in  everything, 
guiding  him,  animating  him,  strengthening  him  to  make  a  thou^ 
sand  sacrifices.  Therefore,  he  says:  ^' Per  fidem  ainbulamus, 
non  per  res  videvms." — We  walk  by  faith,  and  not  by  things 
that  appear.  It  is,  therefore,  according  to  the  apostle,  a  prin- 
ciple. What  does  this  mean  ?  In  the  world,  every  man  has, 
or  is  supposed  to  have,  certain  principles.  We  talk  of  a  man's 
political  principles  ;  we  talk  of  a  man's  religious  principles ;  we 
talk  of  a  man's  commercial  principles  ;  we  say  of  a  man,  that 
he  is  a  man  of  high  principles  ;  that  he  is  a  man  of  democratic 
principles ;  or  his  political  principles  are  republican ;  or  his 
principles  are  radical,  as  the  case  may  be.  What  does  this 
mean  ?  Two  things.  First  of  all,  it  means  that  that  man  has 
a  certain  conviction  upon  his  mind  of  the  truth — a  certain  line 
of  action — certain  principles  that  he  admits  into  his  mind  ;  and, 
having  admitted  them  into  his  mind,  he  acts  upon  them. 
Thus,  for  instance,  a  man  is  a  democrat.  What  does  that 
mean  politically  ?     It   means  that  according  to  his  judgment 

35 


546  Divine  Faith  the  Principle  of  Christian  Life. 

—weighing  the  pros  and  cons — he  thinks  it  is  better  to  pre- 
serve the  State  rights  of  this  great  repubHc.  Then  he  thinks 
it  better  to  maintain  each  individual  State  in  independence,  as 
far  as  regards  its  own  laws,  in  the  Federal  Union.  The  moment 
he  admits  that,  after  weighing  the  arguments,  pro  and  contra — 
the  moment  he  admits  it  into  his  mind,  the  very  next  thing  he 
does  is  to  join  a  democratic  club,  or  give  a  democratic  vote  in 
the  election.  In  a  word,  his  conviction  becomes  principle  when 
he  puts  it  into  action.  Understand  this  well :  a  mere  intellec- 
tual conviction  is  not  principle.  What  do  you  say  of  the  man» 
for  instance,  who  is  convinced,  intellectually,  that  the  demo- 
crats are  right,  and  then  votes  with  the  radicals?  You  will  say 
he  is  a  man  of  no  principle.  What  would  you  say  of  a  man 
that  said  the  Catholic  religion  was  the  true  one,  and  yet  went 
every  Sunday  to  the  Protestant  Church  ?  You  would  say,  he 
is  a  man  of  no  religious  principle.  And  why?  Because  his 
conviction  is  there,  but  he  does  not  act  upon  it.  It  is  only 
when  the  conviction  of  the  mind  is  reduced  to  action,  and  the 
man  knows  which  of  the  candidates  he  will  uphold,  and  which 
is  the  enemy  of  his  principle.  Thus  it  is  in  politics,  thus  it  is 
in  commerce,  and  in  all  the  relations  of  public  life. 

Faith,  according  to  St.  Paul,  is  principle.  I  wish  to  look 
upon  it  in  this  light,  measured  by  the  standard  of  human  prin- 
ciple. Now,  in  order  that  you  may  know  what  faith  must  be, 
what  is  the  first  thing  necessary  in  man,  when  he  pretends  to 
Slave  principles,  political  or  otherwise?  The  very  first  thing 
mecessary  is,  that  he  should  know  precisely  what  his  convictions 
are.  The  man  that  does  not  know  the  merits  of  his  party,  does 
not  know  what  line  of  action  he  intends  to  pursue,  does  not 
know  the  issue  of  a  political  vote  ;  he  knows  nothing  about  it ; 
that  man  has  no  principle.  A  man  must  have  a  clear  idea  in 
Tiis  mind,  well-cut  and  well-defined.  What  do  you  say  of  a 
■man,  for  instance,  who  is  constantly  changing,  not  knowing  ex- 
actly on  which  side  to  vote  ;  one  day  with  one  party,  another 
'day  with  another  party ;  on  one  question  on  the  republican, 
and  another  on  the  democratic  side  ?  You  would  say  of  him 
that  he  is  a  man  who  has  no  clear,  well-defined  principles  ;  no 
clear  notion,  no  accurate  idea  of  what  democracy,  or  radicalism, 
or  republicanism  means.  As  in  politics,  so,  in  like  manner,  the 
tnan  who,  in  religion,  does  not  know  what  to  believe,  and  says 


Divine  Faith  the  Principle  of  Christian  Life.  547 

"  Well,  the  Catholic  Church  may  be  the  true  one  ;  I  am  really 
inclined  sometimes  to  think  it  is  the  true  one  ;  but,  after  all,  I 
don't  know ;  the  Protestant  Church  seems  to  me  to  be  false, 
and  sometimes  I  think  it  is  all  right."  You  would  say  that 
man  has  no  clear  principle  at  all  ;  and  why?  Because  that  man 
has  no  definite  idea  in  his  mind  either  in  political  or  in  com- 
mercial relations.  What  do  you  say  of  a  man  in  the  commer- 
cial relations  of  life  who  did  not  know  the  difference  between 
right  and  wrong  ;  who,  but  to-day  would  not  steal,  and  to-mor- 
row again,  would  stand  up  and  say  it  is  lawful  to  do  this,  that, 
or  the  other  disreputable  thing?  You  would  say  of  such  a 
man  that  he  has  no  principle — no  clear  idea  of  right  or  wrong — 
he  has  no  defined  principle.  The  very  first  necessity  of  any 
principle  is,  that  it  shall  be  a  clear  principle,  well  cut  and  well 
defined  in  the  mind  ;  without  this  it  cannot  even  exist. 

Secondly,  being  thus  well  defined  in  the  mind,  the  next  thing 
is  that  a  man's  principle,  whatever  it  be,  shall  be  firm — that  he 
shall  grasp  it  firmly;  and  that  it  shall  enter  into  his  soul  deeply, 
as  an  intellectual  conviction  ;  so  that  it  shall  remain  there  un« 
moved  and  immovable.  Otherwise  we  deem  him  as  a  man 
without  principle.  Of  a  man  constantly  changing  sides,  the 
newspapers  say,  in  the  United  States:  "  He  is  a  great  demo- 
crat this  year;  last  year  he  was  a  know-nothing.  A  radical  to- 
day, he  was  a  liberal  republican  yesterday.  To-day  he  goes  in  for 
Greeley  ;  yesterday  he  was  preaching  for  Grant."  What  do  you 
say  of  that  man  ?  You  say  he  has  no  principle  at  all  ; — no  firm- 
ness of  principle  at  all.  What  greater  reproach  can  you  put 
upon  a  man  than  to  say — "  You  turned  your  coat ;  you  have 
shifted  your  politics."  I  remember  once,  when  I  was  a  boy, 
seeing  a  man  in  Galway,  who  became  a  great  "  repealer,"  and 
wanted  to  get  into  Parliament.  His  principles  were  well 
known  ;  up  to  that  very  time  he  was  a  great  Tory.  He  came 
into  the  court-house ;  and  another  gentleman  there  wanted  to 
tell  the  people  how  he  had  changed  from  being  a  Tory  to  a  Re- 
pealer ;  and  he  took  off  his  coat  and  turned  it  inside  out.  I 
feel  that  it  is  scarcely  proper — I  feel  the  impropriety  of  illus- 
trating, on  such  an  occasion  as  this,  my  arguments  with  such 
familiar  examples — I  feel  that  this  is  not  the  time,  nor  the 
place  to  say  a  word  that  will  provoke  laughter;  yet  still,  I  want 
to  impress  upon  you  by  this  means  that  principle,  wherever  it 


548  Divine  Faith  the  Principle  of  Christian  Life. 

exists,  must  be  firm  in  the  mind — must  be  there  unmoved  and 
immovable ;  or  else  it  is  no  principle  at  all. 

Thirdly,  principle,  wherever  it  exists,  should  be  reduced  to 
action.  It  must  animate  a  man's  life.  It  must  show  itself  in 
his  support  of  the  party  that  he  believes  in,  in  politics,  in  the  line 
he  pursues  in  commerce,  in  his  social  relations,  and  also  in  re- 
ligion ;  for,  if  not  there  practically,  it  is  not  principle  at  all, 
but  a  mere  mental  opinion  that  slides  in  the  mind,  and  goes 
back  and  forth  from  that.  These  being  the  three  great  features 
of  principle,  let  us  apply  them  to  faith. 

First  of  all,  it  follows  that,  if  faith  be  the  principle  of  Chris- 
tian life,  that  faith  must  be  clear,  definite,  logical — well  defined, 
and  resting  upon  an  intellectual    basis  from  which  it  can   never 
be  moved.     If  it  is  mere  sentiment,  it  is  not  faith.     If  it  is  mere 
opinion,  no  matter  how  strong,  it  is  not   faith.     It  must  be  an 
intellectual  conviction,  knowing  well  the  reason  why  it  exists, 
and  as  clearly  defined,  as  well  and  accurately  impressed  upon 
the  mind  that  conceives  it  as  a  mathematical  conclusion.     An 
opinion   may  change,  whilst  he  who  holds  it,  holds  it  only  by 
the  uncertain  grip  of  his  own  reason.     That  which  appears  rea- 
sonable to-day,  may  appear  unreasonable  to-morrow.     Such  is 
the  uncertainty  of  the  mind  of  man.     But   faith,  which  is  only 
comprehended  in  the  mind  as  the  truth  of  God — as  the  truth  of 
God,  as  it  is  in  the  mind  of  God ; — or  the  truth  of  God  as  ex- 
pressed by  the  lips  of  God  ; — that  faith  must  be  as  clear  and  as 
accurate  as  it  is  in  the  mind  of  the  Eternal  Truth  that  conceived 
it.     I  ask  you  where  do  we  find  it?     Where,  under  the  canopy 
of  heaven,  is  this  well-defined   faith,  the   moment  a  man  goes 
outside  the  limits  of  the  Catholic  Church?     In  the  Catholic 
Church — in  this  body,  instituted  by  Christ  to  preserve,  to   per- 
petuate, and   to   spread   his  religion — every  man   knows  accu- 
rately and  precisely  what  he  believes.     Ask  any  one  a  question 
on  any  matter  of  faith,  and  you  have   asked  two  hundred  mil- 
lions.    Ask  one  Catholic  man   the  simple  question,  "  Is  Christ 
present  in   the   Blessed  Eucharist  ?  "  and  he  will  answer  with 
two  hundred  millions  at  his  back,  "Yes;  He  is  there  as  sure  as 
He  is  upon  the  Father's  right  hand  in  heaven."     Ask  one  Cath- 
olic, can  the  priest  forgive  sins,  in  the  Sacrament  of  Penance  ? 
and  he  will  answer  with  the  voice  of  two  hundred  millions: 
"  Yes  ;  he  can  forgive  sins  as  surely  as  Christ,  our  Lord,  forgave 


Divine  Faith  the  Principle  of  Christian  Life.  549 

sins."  So  with  every  article  of  faith — clear,  accurate,  well-de- 
fined— the  Catholic  Church  never  teaches  with  an  uncertain 
voice.  The  Catholic  never  says,  "  We  are  inclined  to  believe 
that" — or  "  this  maybe  true" — or  "  there  may  be  a  doubt,  or 
probability,  that  Christ  is  present  in  the  Blessed  Eucharist  ;  " — 
*'  a  great  deal  may  be  said  on  the  side  of  the  priest's  forgiving 
sins;  " — "  some  men  believe  that  the  child,  on  being  baptized, 
is  released  from  original  sin." 

The  Catholic  Church  never  speaks  that  way.  Why?  Because 
she  has  the  mind  of  Christ  living  in  her;  because  He  speaks  in 
her  ;  because  the  Holy  Ghost  is  upon  her  lips.  The  Church  is 
not  inspired,  but  the  Church  is  directed,  and  so  she  can  never 
err,  nor  never  teach  with  an  uncertain  voice.  Ask  the  first 
priest  you  meet  any  question  of  faith,  and  he  answers,  "  The 
Church  teaches  this  ;  this  is  true  ;  that  is  false  ;  this  is  a  right 
thing;  that  is  a  wrong  thing.  He  that  believes  this  shall  be 
saved  ;  he  that  believes  not  shall  be  condemned."  No  uncer- 
tainty ;  no  doubt  expressed  ;  no  wavering  voice  answers  us  in 
the  Catholic  Church.  Everything  is  answered  ;  is  clear,  well 
cut,  in  its  firm,  dogmatic  expression,  as  it  lies  in  the  mind  of 
God.  Go  outside  the  Catholic  Church,  and  faith  ceases  to  have 
a  voice  of  certainty.  Go  outside  the  Catholic  Church,  and,  at 
once,  you  find  yourself  in  the  midst  of  contending  schools,  one 
contradicting  the  other  ;  one  denying  what  the  other  admits. 
The  Episcopalian  Protestant  admits  the  existence  of  an  order 
of  necessary  bishops.  The  Calvinist  comes  in  and  says,  "  It  is 
not  true  ;  it  is  against  the  Scriptures  ;  and  I  have  as  good  a 
right  to  the  Scriptures  as  you."  The  Unitarian  comes  in  and 
says:  "  There  is  no  Trinity ;  there  is  only  one  God,  and  there 
are  no  persons  in  God."  The  Quaker  comes  in  and  says :  "  That 
is  true  ;  for  the  Holy  Ghost  has  come  into  me."  The  Unitarian 
says:  "  No  ;  there  is  no  such  being  as  the  Holy  Ghost ;  for  I 
have  as  good  a  right  to  the  Scriptures  as  you."  In  a  word,  the 
moment  you  go  outside  the  Catholic  Church,  Christianity,  as  a 
religion,  becomes  contemptible.  It  cannot  stand  beside  the 
paganism  of  old.  The  pagans  of  old,  to  be  sure,  all  believed  in 
a  certain  set  of  false  gods  ;  but  they  believed  in  them  with  a 
certain  unity  of  belief.  They  had  a  certain  unity  amongst  them, 
a  certain  system  of  firm  faith.  Christianity,  outside  the  Church, 
loses  its  respectability,  because   it  loses    its   certainty.     Wliat 


550  Divine  Faith  the  Prittciple  of  Christian  Life. 

could  a  philosopher  say — what  could  one  of  the  Chinese  or 
Japanese  pagan  philosophers  say,  when  he  came  to  contemplate 
twenty,  thirty,  or  a  hundred  sects,  all  fighting  over  the  open 
page  of  the  Bible;  all  fighting  over  one  sentence  of  the  Bible. 
What  could  such  a  one  say  but  :  "  Oh  !  thou  God  of  the  Chris- 
tians, you  are,  surely,  a  God  of  confusion,  or  you  never  would 
have  thrown  such  a  bone  of  contention  among  your  followers." 
But  the  moment  he  enters  the  Catholic  Church,  there  does  he 
find  the  voice  that  claims  to  be  the  very  voice  of  Christ ;  there 
does  he  find  the  great,  mighty  mother  of  truth,  teaching  with 
the  certain  voice  of  authority,  laying  her  hand  upon  the  grave 
— the  empty  grave  of  the  Saviour — and  saying:  "  I  stood  by 
this  tomb,  on  Easter  morning,  when  He  arose,  and  stood  in 
spirit  with  me.  And  when  He  sent  down  the  seven-fold  gifts 
of  the  Spirit  upon  me,  preaching,  I  went  forth  upon  Pentecost 
Sunday,  and  unfurled  the  banner  of  Christ  in  the  streets  of 
Jerusalem.  That  command  I  have  carried  into  every  land,  and 
I  defy  philosophers  and  historians  to  mention  one  single  per- 
secution in  which  I  have  ever  failed  to  preach  with  a  certain 
voice,  or  contradicted  my  own  testimony," 

Again,  faith  must  be  firm,  it  must  be  immovable  in  the 
mind  ;  it  must  be  unchangeable.  Where  do  we  find  this,  my 
friends?  Oh!  dearly  beloved  brethren,  what  a  comfort  it  is  for 
us  Catholics  to  know  that  our  history — the  history  of  our 
Church,  of  our  mother — lies  there  open  before  the  criticism  of 
a  hostile  world,  and  bears  the  scrutinizing  glance  of  thousands 
of  hostile,  inimical  intellects.  She  says :  "  When  have  I  ever 
wavered  in  my  faith,  or  given  up  one  iota  of  the  Gospel's  mes- 
sage? When  have  I  ever  allowed  king,  or  kaizer,  or  people  to 
contradict  me?"  The  moment  that  any  man,  bishop,  arch- 
bishop, emperor,  or  king,  with  a  mighty  nation  at  his  back, 
dared  to  rise  up  against  her  teachings,  to  deny  one  tittle  of 
the  Church's  doctrine — that  moment  she  cut  them  off  as  rotten 
branches.  She  lost  to  herself  half  the  world,  and  she  couldn't 
help  it,  unless  she  moved  from  its  basis  the  magnificent  faith 
that  she  got  from  God.  "This  world  shall  come  to  an  end  ;  all 
things  shall  pass  away ;  but  the  Church  of  God  will  never  sac- 
rifice one  iota  of  the  truth  ;  because  Christ  has  said  that  '  the 
gates  of  hell  shall  never  prevail  against  her.'  " 

Now,  for  us  Catholics,  I  come  to  the  most  important  reflec- 


Divine  Faith  the  Prificiple  of  Christiaji  Life.  551 

tion  of  this  sermon.  Dearly  beloved,  as  long  as  any  truth  is 
only  viewed  as  a  mere  intellectual  conviction,  or  a  mere  pro- 
fession, it  is  not  yet  a  principle.  For  instance,  in  politics,  if  a 
man  says:  "I  am  intellectually  convinced  that  the  democratic 
is  the  best  form  of  government  in  America.  I  profess  myself  a 
democrat  ;  "  then,  when  the  election  comes,  he  abstains  from 
voting,  or  gives  his  vote  to  the  opposite  party — what  would  you 
say  of  such  a  one?  You  would  say:  "Your  convictions  may 
be  democratic,  but  your  principles  are  not ;  you  do  not  act  on 
them.  Now,  so  it  is  with  faith.  Faith,  if  it  is  to  be  the  prin- 
ciple of  Christian  life,  must  show  itself,  not  only  in  the  profes- 
sion of  the  lips,  but  also  in  the  actions  of  life.  In  order  to  do 
this,  man  must  live  up  to  his  faith.  Whatever  that  faith  teaches 
him,  he  must  live  up  to  it.  The  Catholic  faith  says:  "  Blessed 
are  the  poor  in  spirit,  for  theirs  is  the  kingdom  of  heaven."  It 
is  hard  for  the  rich  or  avaricious  man  to  enter  there.  There- 
fore, the  Catholic  man  must  never  allow  his  heart  and  soul  to 
be  entirely  set  upon  the  things  of  this  world,  so  as  to  induce 
him  to  forget  his  God.  The  Catholic  faith  says  :  "  Blessed  are 
the  pure  of  heart,  for  they  shall  see  God."  Therefore,  the 
Catholic  man  must  restrain  his  passions ;  he  must  keep  his 
vile,  earthly,  lustful  desires  in  check  ;  he  must  never,  in  thought, 
in  word,  or  in  deed,  offend  the  God  of  infinite  purity  ;  he  must 
be  pure  in  thought,  pure  in  conviction,  and  pure  in  action. 
The  Catholic  Church  teaches  us  that  the  sinner  must  approach 
and  humble  himself  in  sorrow,  and  show  himself  to  the  priest, 
and  must,  through  the  priest,  touch  the  hem  of  Christ's  robe — • 
the  sacramental  robe  that  flows  around  Him.  He  must  come 
in  personal  contact  with  our  Lord,  through  the  priest,  in  order 
to  be  healed  of  his  sin.  Remember,  in  this  day's  Gospel,  the 
woman  did  not  touch  our  Lord;  she  did  not  touch  Him  at  all  j 
she  did  not  touch  His  person  ;  she  only  touched  the  hem  of 
His  garment  ;  but  that  garment  was  upon  Him  ;  and,  therefore, 
she  was  healed. 

The  Protestant  says:  "If  our  Lord  were  present  upon  this 
earth,  I  would  go  to  confession  to  Him,  but  not  to  a  priest." 
It  is  true,  we  are  nothing  but  the  hem  of  the  garment  of  our 
divine  Lord.  It  is  true  that  you  do  not  come,  personally  and 
directly,  to  Jesus  Christ  ;  but  j^ou  touch  the  hem  of  His  gar- 
ment— the  garment  that  belongs  to  Him.    We  belong  to  Him — 


552  Divine  Faith  the  Principle  of  Christian  Life. 

we  are,  in  ourselves,  as  lifeless,  as  mean,  and  as  despicable  as 
that  piece  of  cloth  was  which  He  wore,  and  which  derived  all 
its  healing  power,  all  its  peculiar  virtue,  and  all  its  divine  power, 
from  the  very  fact  that  it  floated  around  the  feet  and  hung 
from  the  shoulders  of  the  Son  of  God.  So,  the  priesthood  is 
the  garment — the  robe  which  trails  through  this  world  behind 
Him ;  touching  which,  every  sinner  finds  that  the  priest  is  as 
the  Lord  of  glory,  touching  him  with  a  sacramental  and  a  heal- 
ing hand. 

Now,  may  I  ask  you.  How  is  man  to  be  pure  ?  how  is  he  to  be 
unworldly  ?  how  is  he  to  be  humble  and  forgiving  ?  how  is  he  to 
make  sacrifices,  every  day  if  necessary,  even  the  sacrifice  of  life, 
if  it  be  demanded,  as  it  was  demanded   of  our   Irish  forefathers 
in  days  gone  by?  how  is  he  to  do  all  this,  unless  the   grace  of 
God  be  with  him  ?     How  can  we  do  it  of  ourselves  ?     Even  with 
all   the  faith  that  we  have  ;  even   though  we  were  the  best  of 
Catholics  (as   far  as   regards   belief)  in   the  world  ;  even  though 
our  faith  were  strong  enough  to  move  mountains  ;  without  grace 
— that  is  to  say,  without  divine  charity — we  can  still  do  nothing. 
Therefore,  whenever  faith   is  the  principle — whenever  it  is  the 
Catholic  principle — it  must  be  accompanied   by  grace.     Christ 
our  Lord,  in  the  day  that  he  unfurled  the  standard  of  the  Gos- 
pel, gave  faith  by  His  preaching.     He   also  poured  forth  grace, 
in  order  that  m.en,  through  their  advancement  in  grace,  might 
be  able  to  live  up  to  their  faith  ;  even  to   bear  the   efficacious 
principle  in  their  lives.     Faith,  alone,  would  not  do  this.     If 
faith   alone   would   do  this,   St.    Paul  never  would   have  said  : 
"  You  may  have  faith  strong  enough   to  move  mountains,  and 
not  have  charity."     If  faith  alone — that  is  to  say,  firm  belief — 
made  man  able  to  do  good,  Christ  never  would  have  said  :  "  The 
devils  believe,  and   tremble."     The   strength  of  their  faith  did 
not  make  them  able   to  do  good.     No !  a  man  may  have  the 
faith  of  the  Catholic  Church  in  his  mind,  and  yet  he  may  be  a 
disgrace  to  his  Church  and   to   his  fellow-Catholics.     Now,  the 
fact  is,  as  we  all  know  well,  the  great  truth  is,  the  unhappy  man 
who  is  a  disgrace  to  his  religion   is   never  so  demonstrative  in 
proclaiming  his  Catholicity  as  when   he   is  under  the  influence 
of  drink,  actually  scandalizing  his  Church,  and  proving  a   stum- 
bling-block to  the  church  to  which  he  belongs.     Faith   must  be 
accompanied  by  divine  grace,  or  else  it  is  mere  conviction,  which 


Divine  Faith  the  Principle  of  Christian  Life.  553 

never  will  be  elevated  to  the  dignity  of  principle  by  being  let 
into  the  life  of  man.  That  was  the  meaning  of  the  words  of 
our  Lord  when  He  said  to  His  apostles  :  "  You  are  the  light  of 
the  world,  by  your  preaching."  "  You  are  also,"  He  said,  "  the 
salt  of  the  earth ;  "  the  healing  power,  which  is  to  heal  and  to 
preserve  the  corruption  of  mankind  from  further  corruption,  by 
the  sacraments.  Whenever  the  Sacraments  are  not  side  by  side 
with  faith,  there  can  be  no  faith  as  a  principle.  Wherefore  He 
said  :  "  Go,  teach  all  nations ;  teach  them ;  baptize  them  ;  "  that 
is  to  say,  give  them  light,  give  them  a  principle  of  faith,  by 
teaching;  and  give  them  grace,  by  the  sacraments. 

Now,  I  ask  you,  where  is  this  faith  to  be  found?  Faith — ac- 
companied by  divine  grace — where  is  it  to  be  found,  except  in 
the  Catholic  Church?  Oh,  my  friends,  like  the  garden  of  Eden 
of  old — the  earthly  paradise,  around  which  flowed  the  great 
river — so,  around  the  Catholic  Church,  through  it,  and  irrigating 
it  on  every  side,  flow  the  channels,  ever  filled  with  the  waters 
of  divine  grace,  the  rivers  that  flow  from  the  fountain  of  mercy, 
to  meet  every  want  of  our  spiritual  nature  ;  to  meet  every  re- 
quirement of  our  souls;  bringing  us  forth  unto  God  in  Baptism  ; 
strengthening  us  unto  God  in  Confirmation  ;  feeding  us,  as  men 
must  be  fed  in  order  to  live,  by  Holy  Communion  ;  healing  us, 
in  our  spiritual  sickness,  by  the  sacrament  of  Penance  ;  and  pre- 
paring us  for  the  last  terrible  journey,  by  Extreme  Unction.  In 
a  word,  ever>'  requirement  of  the  spiritual  body;  every  require- 
ment for  society  and  for  the  individual,  is  to  be  found  in  the 
Church.  Christ  our  Lord  has  opened  up  a  new  river  of  divine 
grace. 

W'here,  outside  the  Catholic  Church,  is  that  faith  to  be  found  ? 
The  most  that  anybody  pretends  to,  outside  the  Catholic 
Church,  is  to  create  a  conviction  in  the  mind.  The  greatest 
preacher,  or  the  most  eloquent  minister,  outside  the  Catholic 
Church,  does  not  pretend  to  do  more  than  to  give  a  mental 
principle  or  conviction.  Ask  any  one  of  them — go,  stand  in 
their  pulpits,  and  say:  "I  have  admired,  sir,  the  eloquence 
with  which  you  have  advocated  the  cause  of  Christ.  You  have 
taught  me  how  humble  He  was  ;  you  have  taught  me  to  love 
Him.  I  see  many  objects  of  human  love  around  me,  distract- 
ing me,  drawing  me  away  from  Him ;  so  many  evil  examples 
among  men  ;  and,  hearing  the  words  which  fell  from  your  lips, 


554  Divine  Faith  the  Principle  of  Christian  Life. 

and  through  your  words,  I  am  convinced  of  my  duty  of  loving 
Him;  and  that  duty  can  be  accomplished  only  by  the  divine 
grace  given  me,  by  which  I  shall  be  enabled  to  keep  myself  in 
communion  with  Him."  Outside  the  Catholic  Church,  neither 
preacher  nor  any  other  man  can  give  any  guarantee  to  him  who 
thus  asks.  He  says  :  '*  I  have  no  power  from  God.  I  cannot 
touch  you  with  a  healing  hand.  Are  you  weak  ?  I  have  no 
food  to  give  you  ;  there  is  no  Eucharist  here.  Are  you  trem- 
bling in  your  spiritual  infancy  ?  I  have  no  sacramental  grace  of 
Confirmation  to  give  you.  There  is  no  grace  here  ;  the  foun- 
tain is  dried  up  ;  the  river  of  purifying  waters  has  long  since 
ceased  to  flow.  A  man  whose  name  was  Luther,  with  all  the 
power  of  hell,  dammed  up  the  stream,  and  kept  back  the  sacra- 
mental graces  which  flow  now  in  their  old  channels  around  the 
paradise  of  the  Catholic  Church ;  but  here  the  river-bed  is 
dry." 

But,  on  the  other  hand,  dearly  beloved,  in  the  Catholic  Church 
itself,  where  there  is  the  water  flowing  of  divine  grace,  there  are 
children  of  the  Church  standing,  who  refuse  to  make  use  of  the 
sacramental  waters,  and  remain  with  all  their  sins  upon  their 
head.  Of  what  avail,  then,  is  it  to  be  a  Catholic  for  the  man  who 
stays  away  for  three,  four,  or  ten  years  from  confession  ?  I  re- 
member once  meeting  a  man  who  acknowledged  to  me  that  he 
was  ten  years  away  from  confession ;  and  he  was  a  most  fervent 
Catholic.  I  said  to  him  this  one  word  ;  "  Now,  you  believe  in 
my  power  to  absolve  you  from  sin  ;  you  know  the  curse  of  God 
is  upon  you,  and  not  a  single  ray  of  Divine  Grace  can  ever  pen- 
etrate to  your  soul,  as  long  as  that  curse  is  there.  You  cannot 
pretend  that  it  is  a  misfortune  of  yours,  that  you  had  not  these 
graces  at  your  call ;  yet,  for  every  moment  of  this  time,  you 
know  God  will  judge  you.  The  Protestant  does  not  know  any- 
thing about  it ;  consequently  he  does  not  go  to  confession  ;  but 
you  know  it ;  and  I  ask  you,  if  you  both  stood  before  the  throne 
of  God,  which  of  the  two  would  be  the  most  guilty?  "  Like  a 
true  man,  he  laid  hold  of  the  collar  of  my  coat,  and  would  not 
let  me  go  until  he  brought  me  into  a  private  room;  and  he  did 
Penance  and  changed  his  life.  So  I  say,  my  friends,  of  M'hat 
avail  to  good  are  the  waters  of  Penance  that  are  flowing,  if  you 
wash  not  in  them  ?  When  Naaman,  the  Syrian,  came  to  the 
Prophet  Elias,  and  asked  to  be  cured  of  a  leprosy,  the  prophet 


Divine  Faith  the  Principle  of  Christian  Life.  555 

told  him  ;  "  If  you  wish  to  be  cured,  go  down  and  bathe  three 
times  in  the  river  Jordan."  The  fooHsh  man  said :  "  I  will  not 
do  it  ;  "  and  was  returning  home  with  his  leprosy,  when  his 
servant  stopped  him,  and  said  :  "  Why,  master,  it  is  such  an 
easy  thing  to  go  down  into  the  water.  Why  will  you  refuse  to 
do  it?  Come,  let  us  go  back."  He  bathed  and  came  out 
naked,  with  his  flesh  as  clean  as  that  of  a  little  child.  Before 
you,  Catholics,  is  the  Jordan  of  Divine  grace  flowing — the  wa- 
ters of  penance  tinged  with  the  blood  of  Christ.  You  stand 
there  upon  these  banks,  in  sight  of  that  running  stream  of  Di- 
vine grace,  with  leprosy  and  defilement  upon  you — an  object  of 
hatred  to  God,  an  object  of  disgust  to  the  angels  of  God.  You 
stand  there  like  the  Syrian  Naaman,  and  you  say:  "  I  will  not 
do  it  I  "  Was  ever  foolishness  to  be  compared  to  this?  And  still 
you  pretend  you  have  religious  principles  as  Catholics.  No  ! 
It  is  only  your  conviction  ;  it  is  not  your  action ;  it  is  not  your 
principle.  You  are  believing  with  the  Church,  but  you  are  act- 
ing with  the  enemies  of  the  Church  ;  you  are  acting  with  the 
devil.  How  is  it  that,  in  this  our  day,  there  are  so  many  Catholics 
that  say,  "  I  don't  understand  all  this  talk  about  Catholic  paro- 
chial schools.  I  send  my  children  to  the  public  school.  I  send 
them  there  to  learn  ;  for  the  Protestant  schools  are  the  best  for 
education  ;  and  it  is  no  matter  to  me  about  religion.  I  do  not 
wish  to  have  my  children  educated  under  the  hands  of  the  priest 
and  the  nun."  What  do  you  say  of  a  Catholic  who  speaks  of 
things  in  this  way?  You  say  you  are  Catholic  by  conviction, 
and  you  are  hostile  to  Catholicity  by  your  action  ;  for  it  is  the 
outside  view — the  action  of  a  man — through  the  life  he  leads — 
that  determines  his  principles,  his  Church,  and  his  religion. 

Why  is  it  that  so  many,  nowadays,  say  :  "  Oh  !  the  Pope. 
It  was  time  for  him  to  give  up  his  temporal  power.  Victor 
Emmanuel  keeps  him  in  imprisonment!  Well,  after  all,  there 
is  a  great  deal  to  be  said  for  Victor  Emmanuel,  who  is  a  man 
inclined  to  fight  against  the  Pope."  The  Catholic  who  speaks 
in  this  way  would  not  deny  any  one  point  of  Catholic  doctrine, 
and  is  prepared  to  die  rather  than  to  do  it  ;  yet,  he  is  only  a 
Catholic  by  conviction,  and  is  anti-Catholic  in  principle.  So  I 
say  to  you,  that  unless  you  let  this  divine  religion  into  your 
hearts — unless  you  let  this  divine  influence  purify  your  lives — 
unless  you  let  the  sacraments  come  and  cleanse  you  from  sin, 


55^  Divine  Faith  the  Principle  of  Christian  Life. 

and  rest  upon  you  in  all  the  cleanliness  of  purity,  strengthening 
you   in  the  way  of  God   and  enabling  you  to   live  a   life  which 
will  be  a  shining  light   in  the   domestic  circle  of  your  friends 
(and,  indeed,  of  the  world),  according  to  the  word  addressed  to 
the  apostles  by  our  Lord :  "  Let  your  light  so  shine  before  men 
that  they  may  see  your  works,  and   give  glory  to   the   Father 
who  is  in   heaven  " — unless  you  do  this,  you  do   not  live  up  to 
the  faith,  to  the  dignity,  and  the  principles  nor  to  the  glory  of 
your  religion.     For,  my  friends,  it   is  when   the  sad,  dark  days 
come — then  it  is  that  a  man's  principles  are  put  to  the  test.     It 
is  only  in   the  evil  days   of  their  crucifixion,  and  sacrifice,  and 
danger — then  it  is  that  the  strength  and   grandeur  of  principle 
shine  out.     Thus  it  was,  in  the  olden  time,  a  law  was  made  in 
Ireland,  that  any  priest  found  saying  Mass  should   be  dragged 
upon  the  spot  to  the  scaffold  and  hanged   until  he  was  almost 
dead,  and   then,  before   the   life   left   him,  his  heart  was   to   be 
taken  out  from  his  body,  and  held  before  his  dying  eyes  !     And 
yet,  in  that  day,  there  were  as  many  priests  as  there  are  to-day. 
Time  was,  when,  if  a  Catholic  in  Ireland  was  found  sheltering  a 
priest,  it  meant   confinement,   imprisonment,  confiscation,  and 
banishment.     Yet   there  wasn't   an   Irishman   in  the   land   that 
was  not  ready  to   open   the   doors   of  his   house  to  shelter  the 
priest  of  God.     Thus   it   was,  their  strength  of  faith  and  prin- 
ciple was  tested  and  found  true.     We  are  their  children.     And 
shall  we,  in    this   land,  or  in   any  other  land,  so  far   forget  the 
practices  of  our  religion  as  to  make  our  lives  a  reproach  to  the 
religion  for  which  our  fathers  died  ?    No  !    No  !  where  the  Irish 
race  is,  there  the  faith  seems  the  grandest,  and  the  only  religious 
principle  is   in   every  man  amongst   you !     Now,  let  the  Holy 
Catholic  faith  into  your  lives  ;  and   then  the  arguments  of  the 
ministers  of  the  Church  appealing  to  the  intellect   of  America 
will  come  with  tenfold    increased   power,  and    a    momentum — a 
rush — that  no  intellect   in  the   land   can  withstand.     And  you, 
illustrating  the  Gospel  which  the   priest   preaches — illustrating 
it   in  your  lives — you,  as  well,  will  become  the  apostles  of  this 
great  and  mighty  land ;  and  every  blessing  of  high  intellectual, 
practical  religion — one  in  thought,  one  in  profession,  and  stand- 
ing in  divine  grace,  will  be  the  last  crowning  blessing  that  God 
will  put  upon  the  head  of  this  great  nation. 


THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  AND  THE 

ATONEMENT. 


[Sermon  delivered  in  the  Church  of  St.  Vincent  Ferrer,  May  2,  1872.] 
"  And  to  the  disciple  Jesus  said  :  Son,  behold  thy  mother." 

EARLY  beloved  :  On  last  evening  I  endeavored  to 
describe  to  you  the  beautiful  harmony  and  analogy 
between  the  things  of  nature  and  the  spiritual  things 
of  grace,  so  admirably  developed  and  illustrated  in  the 
dedication  of  this  month  of  May  to  the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary ; 
and  I  told  you  then,  that  on  this  evening  I  would  endeavor  to 
unfold  to  you  the  place  and  the  position  which  the  mother  of 
our  divine  Lord  holds  in  the  plan  of  man's  redemption.  Now, 
there  are  two  great  classes  that  occupy  the  world  to-day,  of 
men  who  differ  in  their  apprehension  of  the  design  of  God  as 
revealed  in  the  redemption  of  man.  The  first  are  those  who 
say,  or  who  seem  to  say,  that  we  did  not  stand  in  need  of  re- 
demption at  all.  They  deny  the  fall  of  man — they  deny  the 
inherent  sinfulness  of  man.  Consequently,  they  deny  the  ne- 
cessity of  the  incarnation  of  the  Almighty  God.  They  deny 
the  necessity  of  sacraments  or  their  efficacy,  and  they  say  that 
man  has,  within  himself,  in  the  very  elements  of  his  nature, 
natural  powers  by  the  development  of  which  he  may  attain 
to  all  the  purposes  of  God,  and  to  the  full  perfection  of 
His  being.  Such,  for  instance,  is  the  doctrine  of  the  wide- 
spread sect  of  Socinius.  Such,  in  a  great  measure,  are  the 
ideas  of  a  number  of  wide-spread  sects — the  Unitarians,  Human- 
itarians, believers  in  human  nature  alone — Progressists,  men 
who  look  to  this  world  and  to  its  scientific  attainments,  and  to 
its  great  developments,  as  effected  by  man  and  reflected  in  the 
spirit  and  in  the  intelligence  of  man,  for  all  the  perfection  of 


558  TJie  Catholic  Church  and  the  Atonement. 

humanity  and  of  society.  This  class  takes  in  all  those  who 
refuse  any  definite  form  of  religion  at  all — who  put  away  from 
them  all  idea  of  the  necessity  of  any  fixed  faith.  This  idea 
represents  the  vast  multitude  of  mankind  found  everywhere, 
and  nowhere  more  numerous  than  here,  in  this  very  land  ;  the 
men  who,  with  the  most  accurate  ideas  on  business,  on  com- 
mercial transactions,  on  law,  on  politics,  etc.,  are  only  found  to 
befollowingan  inaccurate  comprehension,  but  are  careless,  indefi- 
nite, and  not  only  ignorant  of,  but  willing  to  be  ignorant  of, 
every  specific  form  of  defined  faith,  or  belief  in  revelation  at 
all.  They  do  not  give  enough  to  God  in  their  thoughts,  in 
their  minds,  in  the  acknowledgments  of  their  souls  in  this  ques- 
tion of  man's  redemption. 

There  are,  on  the  other  hand,  a  vast  number  who  profess 
Christianity,  and  who,  if  you  will,  give  too  much  to  God  in  this 
matter  of  redemption,  who  say,  that  when  the  Son  of  God  be- 
came man,  he  effected  the  redemption  of  mankind  so  completely, 
that  he  wiped  away  the  world's  sin  so  utterly,  that  all  we 
have  to  do  is  to  lean  upon  Him,  to  govern  ourselves  by  faith, 
with  His  justification,  His  merits;  and  that  without  any  concurrent 
labor  of  our  own,  without  any  work  on  our  part,  but  only  the 
easy  operation  of  *'  believing  on  Christ,"  as  they  put  it,  we 
can  be  saved.  And  hence  we  hear  so  much  about  justification 
by  faith ;  and  hence  we  hear  so  much  ribald  abuse  of  the  Catho- 
lic sacraments — of  fasting,  of  the  Holy  Mass — of  all  the  exterior 
usages  and  sacramental  appliances  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church  ; 
all  mocked  at,  all  derided  as  contrary  to  the  spirit  of  all  true 
religion,  which  simply  is,  according  to  them,  to  believe  with  all 
your  soul  in  Jesus  Christ,  in  His  redemption,  in  His  atonement, 
and  all  sins  are  cleansed.  A  man  may  have  a  thousand  deeds  of 
murder  upon  his  soul  ;  a  man  may  have  loaded  himself  with 
every  most  hideous  form  of  impurity  ;  a  man  may  have  injured 
his  neighbor  on  the  right  hand  and  on  the  left,  and  may  have 
enriched  himself  upon  the  spoils  of  his  dishonesty — there  is  no 
law,  either  of  the  relations  of  God  to  man,  or  man  to  his  fellow- 
man — but  only,  "  believe  on  God,  and  you  are  saved."  Hence, 
we  hear  of  so  many  who  go  out  to  these  camp-meetings, 
and  these  prayer-meetings,  and  there  work  themselves  into  a 
state  of  excitement,  and  say,  "  Oh,  I  have  found  the  Lord  Jesus. 
I  have  found  Him  !  "     There  is  no  more  question  about  that; 


The  Catholic  Church  and  the  Atonement.  559 

they  are  confirmed  ;  they  are  the  elect;  they  arc  the  perfect; 
they  are  the  regenerated  ;  and  there  is  an  end  to  all  their  pre- 
vious sins.  They  need  not  shed  a  tear  of  sorrow,  but  only  be- 
lieve on  the  Lord.  They  need  not  make  an  act  of  contrition, 
they  need  not  mortify  their  bodies,  but  only  believe  on  the  Lord. 
It  is  a  smooth,  and  a  very  easy — a  remarkably  easy — doctrine; 
and  if  it  only  led  to  heaven,  it  would  be,  indeed,  a  sweet  and  an 
easy  way  by  which  we  could  enjoy  ourselves  here,  as  long  as  we 
like,  in  the  indulgence  of  every  vile  passion,  and  afterwards  turn 
and  lean  upon  the  Lord,  and  thus  get  into  heaven.  Between 
these  two  extremes,  the  extreme  of  unbelief,  and  the  mistaken 
view  and  zeal  of  what  appears  to  be  an  over-fervent  faith,  but 
which,  in  reality,  is  not  faith  at  all,  because  faith  means  the  ap- 
preliension  of  the  truth,  and  not  a  distorted  view  of  this  text  or 
that,  of  Scripture  ;  between  these  two  stands  the  Holy  Catholic 
Church  of  God,  and  she  tells  us,  as  against  the  first  class,  the 
humanitarians,  that  we  are  a  fallen  race,  that  sin  is  in  our  blood, 
that  sin  is  in  our  nature,  that  that  nature  is  deformed,  disfigured 
by  sin  ;  that  the  very  fountain-head  of  our  humanity  was  cor- 
rupted in  Adam  ;  and  just  as,  if  you  disturb  the  fountain-head 
of  the  stream,  or  if  you  poison  it,  the  whole  current  that  flows 
from  it  is  muddy  and  disturbed,  or  poisonous,  so  the  whole 
stream  of  our  humanity  that  flows  from  the  sin  of  Adam,  is 
tainted,  and  disfigured,  and  poisoned  by  sin ;  consequently, 
that  we  stood  in  need  of  a  Redeemer,  who  would  atone  for  our 
sins,  and  would,  by  sacrificing  Himself  and  making  Himself  a 
victim,  wipe  away  the  sin  of  mankind. 

But,  on  the  other  hand,  the  Holy  Catholic  Church  teaches  us, 
as  against  the  second  class,  that  two  wills,  two  actions,  are  neces- 
sary for  man's  salvation,  namely,  the  will  of  God,  and  the  will  of 
the  man  who  is  to  be  saved  ;  that  we  must  unite  our  will  with  God, 
and  determine  to  be  saved  ;  otherwise  that  will  of  God,  which  is 
never  wanting,  will  not  alone  avail  for  the  sanctification  or  the  sal- 
vation of  any  man  ;  that  we  must  not  only  will  with  God,  our 
salvation,  but  that  we  must  work  with  God  in  the  work  of  our 
salvation,  according  to  the  words  of  St.  Paul :  "  In  fear  and  trem- 
bling we  must  work  out  our  salvation."  That  although  the  gift 
of  salvation  comes  from  God,  and  is  His  gift,  yet  that  He  will  not 
give  it  except  to  the  man  who  strains  himself  to  lay  hold  of  it, 
according   to   that  other  word  of  the  apostle  :  "  Lay  hold  of 


560  The  Catholic  Church  and  the  Atonement. 

eternal  life.  "  God  is  amply  sufficient  to  save  us  ;  God  is  will- 
ing to  save  us.  We  can  only  be  saved  by  His  graces,  but  if  we 
do  not,  with  our  hands,  lay  hold  of  these  graces,  and  correspond 
with  them,  there  is  no  salvation  for  us.  Just  as  if  you  saw  a 
man  fallen  into  the  sea,  and  you  threw  him  a  rope,  by  which,  if 
he  lay  hold  of  it,  you  can  take  him  into  your  boat,  or  place  him 
on  the  land  ;  you  are  willing  to  save  him,  you  are  anxious  to 
save  him  ;  you  have  put  actually  into  his  hands  the  means  by 
which  he  may  be  saved,  but  if  he  refuses  to  lay  hold  of  that 
measure  of  salvation,  if  he  refuses  the  gift  that  you  offer  him,  of 
life,  you  cannot  force  him,  and  so  he  is  lost  by  his  own  fault. 

Now,  as  it  requires  for  the  salvation  of  every  man  amongst 
us,  two  wills,  two  distinct  actions,  the  will,  and  the  action  of 
God,  our  will,  and  our  action  corresponding  with  Him,  so  also 
in  the  redemption,  two  things  were  necessary  in  order  that  man 
might  be  saved.  First  of  all,  dearly  beloved,  it  was  necessary 
to  find  some  victim  whose  very  act  was  of  such  infinite  value  in 
the  sight  of  God,  that  he  might  be  available  for  the  salvation 
of  mankind,  and  capable  of  atoning  to  God's  infinite  honor  and 
glory,  which  was  outraged  by  sin.  A  victim  must  be  found 
whose  very  act  is  of  infinite  value,  and  why  ?  Because  the 
atonement  which  He  comes  to  make  is  infinite  ;  because  no 
creature  of  God,  acting  as  a  creature,  with  a  finite  merit  and 
power,  and  the  circumscribed  action  of  a  creature,  can  ever 
atone  to  the  Almighty  God  for  sin,  which  is  an  infinite  evil. 
The  first  thing,  therefore,  that  is  necessary  is  an  infinite  power 
of  atonement,  an  infinite  power  of  merit  in  the  victim  for  man's 
sin.  The  second  thing  that  is  necessary  for  redemption  is  a 
willingness  and  a  capability  on  the  part  of  their  atoner  to  suffer, 
and  by  his  sufferings,  and  by  his  sacrifices,  and  by  his  atone- 
ment, wash  away  the  sin.  Where  shall  this  victim  of  infinite 
merit,  yet  a  victim,  be  found?  If  we  demand  the  first  condi- 
tion, namely,  the  power  of  restoring  to  God  that  infinite  honor 
and  glory  which  was  outraged  by  sin,  if  we  demand  this,  we 
may  seek  in  vain  throughout  all  the  ranks  of  God's  creatures ; 
we  may  mount  to  the  heaven  of  heavens  and  seek  throughout 
the  choirs  of  God's  holy  angels,  we  shall  never  find  him,  because 
such  a  one  is  seated  upon  the  throne  of  God  Himself. 

God  alone  is  infinite  in  His  sanctity,  in  His  graces,  and,  if 
He  will  consent   to  be  a  victim,  in  His  power  of  atonement, 


The  Catholic  Church  and  the  Atonement.  561 

God  alone  can  do  it.  Man  could  place  the  cause  there — man 
could  commit  the  sin  ;  the  hand  of  God  alone  can  take  that  sin 
away  by  atonement  ;  and  yet,  strange  to  say,  dearly  beloved 
brethren,  God  alone  cannot  do  it,  because  God  alone  cannot 
furnish  us  with  the  second  privilege  of  the  atoner,  namely,  the 
character  of  a  victim.  How  can  God  suffer?  How  can  God 
be  moved  ?  How  can  God  bleed  and  die  ?  He  is  happiness, 
glory,  honor,  and  greatness  itself.  How  can  He  be  humble 
who  is  above  all  things  ?  Infinitely  glorious  in  His  own  essence, 
how  can  He  be  grieved  who  is  the  essential  happiness  of  heav- 
en ?  He  must  come  down  from  heaven,  and  He  must  take  a 
nature  capable  of  suffering  and  pain  and  of  the  shedding  of 
blood  ;  He  must  take  a  nature  capable  of  being  abused  and 
crushed  and  victimized,  or  else  the  world  can  never  find  its  Re- 
deemer ;  yet  He  must  take  that  nature  so  that  everything  that 
He  does  as  a  victim,  and  everything  that  He  suffers  as  a  victim 
in  that  nature  must  be  attributed  to  God.  It  must  be  the  ac- 
tion of  God  ;  it  must  be  the  suffering  of  God,  or  else  it  never 
can  be  endowed  with  the  infinite  value  which  is  necessary  for  the 
atonement  of  man's  sin.  Behold,  then,  the  two  great  things 
that  we  must  find,  that  God  found  in  the  plan  of  His  redemp- 
tion ;  God  furnished  one,  the  earth  furnished  the  other  ;  God 
furnished  the  infinite  merit,  the  infinite  grace,  the  infinite  value 
of  the  atonement  in  His  own  divine  and  uncreated  Word,  the 
Second  Person  of  the  Holy  Trinity  ;  but  when  it  was  a  question 
of  finding  a  victim — of  finding  a  nature  in  which  this  word 
should  operate,  in  finding  the  nature  in  which  this  word  was  to 
be  grieved,  and  to  be  bruised,  and  to  bleed,  and  to  weep,  and 
to  pray  for  man — God  was  obliged  to  look  down  from  heaven 
and  find  that  nature  upon  the  earth.  Therefore,  my  dearly  be- 
loved brethren,  heaven  and  earth  united  in  producing  Jesus 
Christ,  and  it  is  as  necessary  for  us  to  believe  in  the  reality  of 
the  divinity  that,  coming  down  from  heaven,  dwelt  in  Him,  as 
it  is  for  us  to  believe  in  the  reality  of  the  humanity  which  was 
assumed  and  absorbed  by  Him  into  His  divine  person. 

A  man  may  exalt  the  divinity  at  the  expense  of  the  human- 
ity, and  he  may  say:  "  He  was  divine,  this  Man,  Jesus  Christ, 
but  remember  He  was  not  a  true  man  ;  He  only  took  a  human 
body  for  a  certain  purpose,  and  then,  casting  it  from  Him,  went 
up  into  the  high  heaven  of  God."     The  man  who  says  this  is 

36 


5^2  The  Catholic  Church  and  the  Atonement. 

not  a  Christian,  because  he  does  not  believe  in  the  reality  of 
the  human  nature  of  Jesus  Christ.     Heretics  have  said  this,  and 
the  Church  cut  them  off  with  an  anathema.     Or  we  may  exalt 
His   humanity  at   the  expense  of  His   divinity,  and   say,  "  He 
was  a  true  man,  but   He  was  not  united  to  God  by  personal 
union  ;  He  was  not  a  divine  person,  but  a  human  person;  He 
was  a  true  man,  this  man  who  was  crucified  for  our   sins — true 
and  holy  and  perfect — but  not  God,"     Heretics  have  said  this, 
and   say    it   to-day.     Even    Mahomet    acknowledged    that    the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  was  the   most  perfect  of  men,  but   He  was 
not  God.     The  man  who  says  this  is  not  a  Christian,  because 
he  does   not   believe   in   the  divinity  of  Jesus  Christ.     Now,  I 
think  that  from  what  I  have  said,  you   must  at  once  conclude 
that  in  the  plan  of  min's  redemption,  the  divinity  was  as  neces- 
sary as  the  humanity;  that   the  humanity  was  as  necessary  as 
the  divinity  ;  that   the  world  could  never  be  redeemed  without 
the  divinity;  that   man  alone  could  not  doit;  that  the  world 
could  never  be  redeemed  without  the  humanity,  for  God  alone 
could  never  suffer.     What  follows  from  all  this  ?     It  follows, 
my  dearly  beloved,  in  logic   and  in  truth,  that  for  the  world's 
redemption,   Mary  on   earth  was   as  necessary  as   the    Eternal 
Father  in  heaven  ;  that  in  the  decrees  and  counsels  of  God — in 
'the  plan  of  God — the  Mother  of  His  humanity  was  as  necessaiy 
as  the  Father  of  His  divinity,  and  that  she  rises  at  once,  in  the 
designs  of  God,  to  the  magnificent  part  that  was  assigned  her  in 
the   plan   of  redemption,  namely,  that  the  world  could  not  be 
redeemed  without  her,  because   she  gave  the  human  nature  of 
Jesus  Christ,  without  which  there  was  no  redemption  for  man. 
Who  died  upon  the  cross  ?     The  Son  of  God.     Whose  hands 
were  these   that  were  nailed  to  that   hard   wood  ?     The   hands 
of  the  Son  of  God.     What  person  is  this  that  I  behold  all  cov- 
ered  with   wounds,    and    bleeding   and   crowned   with  thorns  ? 
Who  is  this  sorrow-stricken  person — that  is   the  second   person 
of  the  adorable  Trinity?     The   same  God,  begotten   in    Him, 
consubstantial  to  the  Father,  who  was  from  the  beginning,  and 
by  whom   all  things  were   made.     And   if  this   be  the  Son  of 
God,  what  right  has  that  woman  to  look  up  to   Him  with  a 
mother's  eyes  ?     What  right   have  these  dying  lips  to  address 
her  as  mother?     Ah!  because,  my  dearly  beloved,  he  was  as 
truly  the  Son  of  Mary  as  He  was  the  Son  of  God. 


The  Catholic  Church  and  the  Atonement.  563 

And  now,  as  I  wish  to  take  my  own  time,  and  to  enter  fully 
into  all  these  things  in  successive  meditations,  let  me  conclude 
with  only  one  remark.  Since  I  came  to  the  use  of  reason,  and 
learned  my  catechism,  and  mastered  the  idea  that  was  taught 
me  of  how  God  in  heaven  planned  and  designed  the  redemption 
of  mankind,  the  greatest  puzzle  in  my  life  has  been — a  thing 
that  I  never  could  understand — has  been,  how  any  one,  be- 
lieving what  I  have  said,  could  refuse  their  veneration,  their 
honor,  and  their  love  to  the  Blessed  Virgin,  Mother  of  Jesus 
Christ ;  for  it  seems  to  me  that  nothing  is  more  natural  to  the 
heart  of  man  than  to  be  grateful,  and  that,  in  proportion  to  the 
gift  which  is  received  from  any  one,  in  the  same  proportion  do 
we  find  our  hearts  springing  with  gratitude  within  us,  and  a 
strange  craving,  and  a  strange,  dissatisfied  feeling  to  find  out 
how  we  can  express  that  gratitude  that  we  feel.  And  is  this  a 
sacred  feeling  ?  Most  sacred  ;  natural,  but  most  sacred.  We 
find  in  the  Scriptures  the  loud  tone  of  praise,  honor,  and  ven- 
eration, and  the  gratitude  that  the  inspired  writers  poured  forth 
towards  those  who  were  great  benefactors  of  mankind,  and  es- 
pecially to  the  women  of  the  Old  Testament.  How  loud,  for 
instance,  are  the  praises  that  the  Scriptures  give  to  the  daughter 
of  Jephtha,  because  she  sacrificed  herself  according  to  her 
father's  vow  for  the  people.  How  loud  the  praises  which  cel- 
ebrated the  glorious  woman,  Deborah,  who,  in  the  day  of  dis- 
tress and  danger,  headed  the  army  of  Israel,  drew  the  sword, 
and  the  Scriptures  say  that  all  the  people  praised  her  forever- 
more,  and  they  sang:  "  Blessed  be  God,  because  a  mother  has 
arisen  in  Israel."  How  loud  the  praises  of  Esther,  of  whom  the 
Scripture  tells  us  that  the  Jews  celebrated  an  annual  festival  in 
her  honor  because  she  interceded  with  the  King  Ahasuerus  and 
saved  the  people  from  destruction.  How  loud  the  praises  of 
Judith,  who,  coming  forth  from  the  city,  upon  the  rocky  summit 
of  the  mountain,  with  her  womanly  hand  slew  the  enemy  of 
Israel  and  of  Israel's  God,  Holofernes,  and,  returning  in  triumph, 
the  ancients  of  the  city  came  forth  and  cried  out:  "  Blessed  be 
the  Lord  God  of  Israel,  and  thou  ,  thou  art  the  glory  of  Israel  ; 
thou  art  the  glory  of  Jerusalem  ;  thou  art  the  joy  of  Israel ; 
thou  art  the  honor  of  our  people."  And  yet,  what  did  Deborah, 
or  Esther,  or  Judith — what  did  any  of  these  or  any  other  man 
or  woman   on  the  face  of  the  earth  do  for  us  compared  with 


564  The  Catholic  Church  and  the  Atonement. 

what  Mary  did  ?     Judith  cut  off  the  head  of  Holofernes,  Mary- 
set  her  heel  on  the  head  of  the  serpent  that  was  the  destruction 
of  our  race ;   Esther  pleaded  for  the  people  before  the  Assyrian 
monarch,  and  saved  them  from  temporal  ruin  ;   Mary  pleaded, 
and  pleads,  to  the  King  of  kings,  to  the  King  of  heaven,  and 
saves  the  people  from  destruction.     Jephtha's  daughter  gave 
her  life  ;  Mary  brought  down  the  life,  indeed,  from  heaven,  and 
gave  it  to  us.     And  yet,  strange  to  say,  those  Avho  are  con- 
stantly talking  about  "  the  Bible,  the  Bible,  the  Bible,  the  open 
Bible,  the  Bible  free  to  every  man,"  those  who  call  themselves 
Bible  men,  those  in  whose  oily  mouths  this  Bible  is  always, 
every  text  of  it  coming  forth  as  if  you  taught  a  parrot  in  its 
cage  to  recite  it,  understanding  it  as  much  as  the  bird  would — 
these  are  the  very  people  who  tell  us  that  we  may  join  with 
the  Jews  of  old  in  the  praises  of  Esther  and  praises  of  Deborah, 
that  we  may  cry  out  in  tones  of  admiration  for  Mary,  the  sister 
of  Moses,  for  Rachel,  but  that  we  must  not  say  a  word  to  ex- 
press our  gratitude,  our  love,  our  veneration,  and  our  honor  for 
the  womaij,  the  woman  amongst  women,  the  spiritual  mother 
of  all  our  race,  because  her  Child  was  our  first-born  brother,  the 
woman  that  gave  us  Jesus  Christ,  the  woman  that  gave  to  Him 
the  blood  that  flowed  from  His  veins  upon  Calvary  and  saved 
the  world — for  this  woman  no  word,  save  a  word  of  reproach, 
an  echo  of  the  hisses  of  hell,  an  echo  of  the  sibilation  of  the  in- 
fernal serpent  that  was  crushed  by  God.     Christ  honored  her; 
we  must  not  unite  with  Him  in  her  honor.     Christ  obeyed  her ; 
we  must  not  unite  with  Him  in  obeying  her.     Christ  loved  her; 
we  must  not  let  one  emotion  of  love  into  our  heart.     Who  are 
the  men  that  say  this?     I  have  heard  words  from  their  lips 
which  they  would  not  permit  any  man  to  say  of  their  own 
mothers,  and  they  had  the  infernal  hardihood  to  say  these 
words  of  the  mother  of  Jesus  Christ,  of  the  Son  of  God  ;  and, 
my  friends,  I   believe   we   can  in  no  wise  better  employ   this 
month  of  May  and  its  devotions,  than  in  making  reparation  to 
our  Lord  and  Saviour  and  to  his  holy  mother  for  the  insults 
that  fall  upon  Him  when  they  are  put  upon  her.     The  deepest 
insult  that  you  could  offer  to  any  man  would  be  to  insult  his 
mother;  and  the  more  perfect  the  child  is,  and  the  more  loving, 
the  more  keenly  will  he  feel  that  insult.     He,  with  His  dying 
lips,  provided  for  Mary,  His  mother,  a  son,  a  second  son,  the 


The  Catholic  Church  and  the  Atonement,  565 

purest  and  the  most  loving  amongst  men.  It  shows  how  He 
thought  of  her  at  His  last  moments  ;  how  she  was  the  dearest 
object  that  He  left  upon  this  earth — and  that  which  is  dear  to 
the  heart  of  Jesus  Christ  should  always  be  dear  to  your  hearts 
and  minds — next  to  the  love,  eternal,  infinite,  essential,  that 
bound  Him  in  His  divinity  to  His  Eternal  Father,  next  to  that 
in  strength,  in  intensity,  in  tenderness,  was  the  love  that  bound 
Him  to  the  mother  who  came  in  closest  relation  with  Him, 
And,  O  Lord  Jesus  Christ !  teach  us  to  love  what  Thou 
lovest,  and  to  revere  and  honor  that  which  Thou  didst  conde- 
scend to  honor. 


THE  PROMISES  OF  CHRIST  FUL- 
FILLED ONLY  IN  THE  CATHOLIC 
CHURCH. 


[A    Lecture    delivered    in    St.    Peter's    Church,    Jersey    City,    on    Wednesday 
evening,  May  15,  1872,  in  aid  of  the  new  Church  of  St.  Patrick,  Bergen.] 

Y  FRIENDS:  The  existence  of  the  Catholic  Church 
is  the  most  patent  fact  in  the  history  of  the  world. 
When  Christ  our  Lord  founded  His  Church,  He  em- 
phatically declared  that  she  was  not  to  be  as  a  light 
hidden  under  a  bushel,  but  flaming  upon  the  candlestick,  and 
enlightening  every  man  that  comes  into  the  house  of  this 
world.  He  declared  that  she  was  to  be  as  a  city  built  upon  the 
mountain  summit,  that  every  man,  and  every  wayfarer,  passing 
through  the  ways  of  this  world,  should  behold  her,  and  recog- 
nize her  existence.  If  we  ask  ourselves  what  was  the  meaning 
of  our  Divine  Lord  speaking  of  His  Church  as  something  so 
palpable,  so  unmistakable,  forcing  itself  upon  the  recognition 
of  every  man,  no  matter  how  reluctant  that  man  may  be  to  be- 
hold it — I  answer,  that  our  Lord  meant  to  fix  upon  His  holy 
Church  certain  signs  by  which  she  should  infallibly  be  known 
and  recognized,  among  all  reasoning  men,  as  the  very  Church, 
and  the  very  spouse  of  Jesus  Christ.  Nor  is  there  among  the 
many  strange  mysteries  of  this  world  any  one  thing  that  more 
astonishes  me  every  day,  than  to  behold  the  earnest  man,  the 
high-minded  man,  the  believing  man,  read  the  Scriptures,  and 
yet  fail  to  recognize  the  Church  of  Christ  in  the  holy  Catholic 
Church.  To  me  this  is  the  strangest  intellectual  phenomenon 
in  the  world ;  for  certain  it  is,  if  we  attach  any  meaning  what- 
ever to  the  words  of  the  Son  of  God,  it  was  in  His  purpose, 
and  in  His  fixed,  declared  intention,  to  establish  a  Church  upon 


The  Promises  of  Christ,  etc.  567 

this  earth.  He  alludes  to  it  repeatedly,  over  and  over  again, 
calling  it  now  "  My  Church  ;  "  calling  it,  again,  "  My  kingdom  ;  " 
at  another  time  speaking  of  it  as  "  the  kingdom  of  God  ;  "  and 
making  certain  fixed,  specific  promises  to  this  Church  ;  in  the 
fulfillment  of  which  promises  the  world  has  the  convincing 
proof  of  the  divine  origin  of  our  holy  Catholic  Church  and  re- 
ligion. For,  dear  friends,  Christ  our  Lord  was  not  only  the  Re- 
deemer, the  teacher  of  mankind,  the  atoner  of  the  past,  but  He 
was  also  the  prophet  of  the  future.  The  Scriptures  speak  of 
Him,  and  of  His  coming,  as  of  a  prophet.  "  On  that  day,"  says 
Moses,  "  the  Lord  thy  God,  the  God  of  Israel,  will  raise  up 
unto  thee  a  prophet  like  unto  me.  Him  thou  shalt  hear."  That 
prophet  was  Christ.  And  all  that  He  prophesied  of  the  future 
concerned  this  Church  of  His. 

We  are  come  together  this  evening,  my  friends,  to  consider 
the  prophecies  of  Christ,  the  promises  that  he  made,  to  be  ful- 
filled in  the  future.  We  are  come  together  to  look  for  their  ful- 
fillment ;  and  if  we  find  this  fulfillment  in  the  holy  Catholic 
Church,  then  we  are  assembled,  such  of  us  as  are  Catholics,  to 
glory  in  thanksgiving  to  God  for  the  fulfillment  of  these  promises ; 
and  such  of  us  as  are  not  Catholics — if  there  be  any  here — to 
meditate  profoundly,  in  the  name  of  God,  upon  the  necessity  of 
submitting  our  faith  and  our  love  to  that  one  and  only  Church, 
in  whose  history  in  the  past,  in  whose  existence  in  the  present, 
are  fulfilled  all  the  promises  that  Christ  made. 

Now,  what  were  these  promises,  my  friends  ?  If  we  search  the 
Scriptures,  we  shall  find  that  they  are,  principally,  the  following : 
Christ  our  Lord  emphatically  promised  that  His  Church  should 
be  One,  and  should  be,  in  this  world,  the  very  representative  of 
unity  ;  that  no  difference  of  religious  thought  or  opinion,  no 
warring  of  ideas,  no  holding  of  contradictory  doctrines,  was  ever 
to  be  found  in  her ;  but  that  she  was  to  be  on  earth  a  repre- 
sentative of  intellectual  and  moral  union  of  the  very  best  kind. 
And,  again,  it  was  destined  to  represent  the  ineffable  unity  which 
binds  together,  in  one  nature,  the  Father,  the  Son,  and  the  Holy 
Ghost.  This  was  the  first  promise  that  Christ  our  Lord  made 
to  His  Church.  The  second  promise  that  we  find  in  Scripture, 
made  to  her  was,  that  she  was  to  have  Him,  her  Lord,  her 
God,  her  Founder,  dwelling  in  the  midst  of  her,  with  an  abiding 
presence  ;  that  He  was  to  be  with  her  in  a  peculiar  manner,  as 


5^8  The  Projnises  of  Christ  Fulfilled 

we  shall  see.  The  third  promise  that  Christ  our  Lord  made, 
was  involved  in  the  command,  that  His  Church,  and  her  voice, 
should  be  heard  all  the  world  over,  throughout  all  the  nations  ; 
that  her  faith  was  to  be  preached  in  every  tongue,  and  in  every 
land,  and  to  every  people.  The  last  great  promise  that  He 
made  to  His  Church  was,  that  He  was  to  abide  with  her;  though 
every  other  institution  might  fail  and  die,  though  nations  might 
change  their  governments,  might  lose  their  very  existence,  though 
races  might  disappear  ;  but  that  the  Church  which  He,  the 
Lord,  founded,  should  remain  abiding  forever  and  forever; 
that  systems  of  philosophy  might  be  upheld  in  one  age, 
and  discarded  by  another;  that  scientific  opinions  received 
to-day,  might  be  disproved  to-morrow  ;  but  that  His  Church, 
founded  by  Him,  was  to  remain  immutable,  unchangeable, 
ever  young,  ever  vigorous,  until  the  last  day  of  this  world's 
existence. 

Behold  the  four  great  promises  which,  as  we  shall  see,  are  dis- 
tinctly conveyed  in  Scripture,  and  which,  as  we  shall  also  see, 
are  fulfilled  in  the  holy  Roman  Catholic  Church  ;  and  which  I 
assert,  upon  the  evidence  of  history,  upon  the  evidence  of  our 
own  senses,  of  our  own  reason,  and  of  our  own  experience,  are 
not  fulfilled,  in  any  one  iota  of  them,  outside  of  the  Catholic 
Church.  From  which  I  will  conclude,  that  if  Christ  our  Lord 
intended  that  His  word  should  not  pass  away,  that  His  promises 
should  be  fulfilled,  that  Church  alone  represents  the  divine 
origin,  or  foundation  by  Christ,  in  which  we  find  the  promises 
fulfilled  to  the  letter. 

First  of  all  then,  the  first  prophetic  promise  was  unity.  The 
Son  of  God  came  down  from  heaven  ;  was  incarnate  by  the 
Holy  Ghost,  of  the  Virgin  Mary,  and  was  made  man.  He  came 
down  from  heaven.  He  found  this  world  divided  into  a  thou- 
sand different  religious  sects,  each  representing  not  a  vestige  of 
truth,  but  some  distinctive  form  of  error.  And  He  found  all 
the  philosophers  wrangling  among  themselves,  and  divided  on 
the  great  questions  of  the  existence  of  a  God,  and  of  the  ulti- 
mate destiny  of  the  soul  of  man.  He  found  all  the  interests  in 
society  split  up  and  divided  into  a  thousand  various  forms — all 
at  opposition  one  with  another.  But  He,  coming  down  from 
heaven,  brought  with  Him  the  essential  unity  which  is  the  es- 
sence and  the  nature  of  His  God-head, — for, — the  first  perfection 


Only  in  the  Catholic  Church.  569 

of  the  Almighty  God,  in  Himself,  is  essentially  and  necessarily 
unity; — everything  that  is  perfect  is  one.  The  very  idea  of 
perfection  involves  the  idea  of  unity;  that  is  to  say,  the  one 
point,  the  one  centre  around  and  in  which  everything  of  perfec- 
tion that  is,  is  centred  ;  and  that  perfection,  from  here  and 
there,  concentrates  to  constitute  the  Supreme  Perfection. 
Therefore,  the  Almighty  God,  who  is  infinite  perfection,  is,  also, 
infinite  unity ;  and  when  He  assumed  to  have  this  second  rela- 
tion to  our  humanity — when,  coming  down  from  heaven.  He 
added  our  nature  to  His  own — when  He  associated  God  and 
man.  He  brought  down,  in  that  hour  of  His  Incarnation,  not 
only  the  infinite  perfection  of  His  divinity,  but  also  the  essen- 
tial unity  by  which  He  is  one  with  the  Father.  Christ,  our 
Lord,  God  Incarnate,  God  and  Man,  was  as  much  united  to  the 
Father  by  the  essential  unity  of  nature,  as  He  was,  from  all  eter- 
nity, in  that  Father's  bosom  upon  the  throne  of  the  Most  High. 
The  fact  of  His  becoming  man  did  not  sever,  for  an  instant,  or 
separate,  that  eternal  and  infinite  unity  by  which  He  was  united 
with  God — and  by  which  He  was  God  Himself.  Nay,  more  ; 
even  as  man,  He  embodied  in  Himself  the  principle  of  unity  ; 
for  He  took  our  nature — a  human  soul,  a  human  body,  a  human 
intelligence,  a  human  will,  human  affections — and  everything 
that  was  man,  save  and  except  a  human  personahty.  That  He 
never  took.  Why?  Because  if  He  took  a  human  personality, 
Christ  would  have  been  two  and  not  one.  He  would  have  been 
two,  that  is  to  say.  The  Second  Person  of  the  Blessed  Trinity,  and 
the  human  person  whom  men  beheld  upon  the  earth.  But,  in  order 
to  represent,  even  in  His  sacred  humanity,  the  essential  princi- 
ple of  unity.  He  assumed  that  nature  into  His  divinity;  so  that 
out  of  the  human  body,  the  human  soul,  and  God — out  of  these 
three  was  formed  the  one  person,  our  Saviour,  Christ,  and  that 
person  was  divine.  He  was  still  one,  and  only  one — even 
though  He  was  God  and  man.  He  united  them  in  one.  Ev- 
ery act  of  His,  even  though  performed  in  His  humanity,  was 
still  the  act  of  God  ;  because  the  person  who  assumed  that  hu- 
manity, and  v/ho  owned  it,  and  who  acted  in  it,  was  God.  Why 
did  He  do  this  ?  Because,  dearly  beloved,  Christ  our  Lord,  be- 
ing God,  and  infinitely  perfect,  was  essentially  one.  Now,  the 
design  of  Christ  was  to  represent  upon  the  earth,  and  to  create 
among  men  the  principle  of  unity  of  thought,  unity  of  mind, 


570  The  Promises  of  Christ  Fulfilled 

unity  of  heart,  which  was  so  perfect  in  Himself,  and  which  He 
declared  should  be  represented  in  His  Church.  Therefore  it  is 
that  He  laid  upon  all  mankind  the  obligation  of  fraternal  char- 
ity ;  for  in  charity  is  a  golden  bond ;  and  hearts  are  united. 
Therefore,  also,  did  He  impose  the  obligation  of  faith  ;  because 
in  faith  is  an  intellectual  bond  ;  all  minds  are  united  in  the 
union  of  one  belief,  of  one  thought.  And  unity — the  unity  of 
God — springs  up  in  its  representation  in  that  society  which  is 
the  mystical  body  of  Christ.  In  consequence  of  all  this,  the 
Son  of  God,  the  Saviour,  founded  His  Church,  provided  for  that 
Church,  and  promised  to  her  the  attribute  of  unity.  For  this 
did  He  pray,  the  night  before  He  suffered  and  died.  "  Oh, 
Father,"  He  said,  "  I  pray  for  these  Thou  hast  given  me,  that 
they  may  be  one  ; — and  not  only  for  these,"  He  adds,  "  but  for 
all  who  through  their  word  shall  believe  in  Me,  that  they  may 
be  all  one  as  Thou,  the  Father,  and  I  are  one  ;  Thou  in  Me, 
and  I  in  Thee,  so  that  they  also  may  be  one."  And  again  He 
said,  "There  shall  be  one  fold  and  one  Shepherd." 

And  now  if,  passing  from  the  words  of  faith,  we  come  to  reflect 
with  the  mere  light  of  reason,  does  it  not  stand  to  reason — is  it 
not  absolutely  necessary — that,  if  the  truths  exists,  out  of  that 
truth  must  spring  unity?  If  the  Word  of  God  be  on  earth, 
that  Word  must  be  eternal  truth.  And,  if  truth,  it  cannot  con- 
tradict itself.  It  cannot  say  yes  and  no.  It  cannot  to-day 
preach  one  thing ;  to-morrow  another.  It  cannot  assert  one 
thing  at  one  time  as  true,  and  the  opposite  at  some  other  time 
as  equally  true.  This  would  be  a  lie.  This  would  be  untruth 
substituted  for  truth,  and  error  for  the  unity  of  thought  which 
Christ  left  upon  earth.  Wherever  the  truth  is,  then  there  must 
be  unity  as  a  matter  of  course.  The  moment  division  arises,  the 
moment  one  man  contradicts  another  on  any  subject,  human  or 
divine — that  moment,  the  very  fact  of  this  difference  of  opinion, 
of  this  contradiction,  involves  the  presence  of  error,  because 
one  or  the  other  of  them  must  be  wrong.  They  cannot  be  both 
right.  Dissension  and  division,  therefore,  or  breaking  up  into 
sects,  mutual  contradiction,  is  an  infallible  sign,  wherever  it  ap- 
pears, of  the  existence  of  religious  error.  I  want  to  impress 
this  upon  you  ;  because  in  this  our  age  a  strange  hallucination 
has  taken  possession  of  men's  minds.  Men  recognize  the  sim- 
ple fact  that  in  any  ordinary  dealing  of  life,  if  two  men  disagree 


Only  in  the  Catholic  Church.  $71 

upon  one  question,  one  of  them  must  be  wrong  if  the  other  be 
right.     Both  may  be  wrong  ;  either  may  be  wrong ;  but  both 
cannot  be  right.     But  their  divergence  of  opinion,  their  differ- 
ence, implies  the  fact  that   there  is  wrong — falsehood — between 
them.     Men  who  see  this  in  the  ordinary  dealings  of  life,  men 
who   recognize  it  so   clearly  and  keenly  as  a  matter  of  course, 
will,  when  it  becomes  a  question   of  religion,  in  which  truth  or 
falsehood  involves  the  eternal  salvation  or  damnation  of  man — 
then  they  seem  to  consider  it  as  a  matter  of  course  that  there 
may  be  diversity  of  opinion  without  the  existence  of  religious 
untruth.     They  seem   to  consider  that   division  here,  that  con- 
tradiction here,  is  a  matter  of  no  importance.     Nay,  they  go  so 
far  as  to  say  that  it  is  a  good  thing,  an  excellent  thing.     "  The 
more  sects  we  have,"  they  say,  *'  the  more  religious  we  are ;  the 
more  men's  minds  are  turned  to  religion.     It  is  a  good  thing  to 
have  so  many  different  forms  of  belief,  each  contradicting  the 
other ;  because,  out   of  that   intellectual  and  religious  contest, 
men's  minds  are  brought  to   study  religion,  and  they  are  more 
filled  with   the   thought  of  their   eternal   salvation,  and   of  the 
things  of  God."     This  is  the  popular  error  of  the  day — a  most 
deplorable  error!     Why?     I  ask  you  what  is  the  popular  idea 
of  religion,    in   our  day?      Men  say,   "Oh,  the    more    dispu- 
tation goes  on,  and  the  more  difference  of  opinion  there  is,  and 
the  greater  number  of  sects,  the  more  men's  minds  are  turned 
to  religion."     I  deny  it !     I  say  a  man  may  study  the  Scriptures 
for  forty  years  ;  a  man  may  turn  all  his  attention   to   the  Word 
of  God  ;  but  if,  during  all  that  life-time  of  disputation,  of  asser- 
tion, and  contradiction — if  that  man  has  never  reached  the  truth 
— if  he  has  never  touched  the  truth — if,  all  this  time,  he  is  dis- 
puting about  his  view,  and  that  view  be  a  distorted  and  a  false 
one,  I  deny  that  that  man  is  approaching  to  religion.     It  is   an 
insult  to  the  God  of  truth  to  say  that  a  man  who   all  his  life  is 
peddling  about  a  lie,  is  doing  homage  to  the  essential  unity  and 
truth  of  God.     No!     Wherever  the  truth  is,  unity  must  be.     I 
do  not  say  that  unity  is  truth,  because  men  may  be  united  even 
in  their  belief  of  a  falsehood.     Mind,  I  do   not   say  absolutely 
that  unity  is  truth.     But  I  do  say  that  truth  is  unity.     I  do  not 
say  that  consistency  is  truth  ;  because  persons  might  be  consis- 
tent even  in  a  lie.     But  1  do  assert  that  truth  is  consistency  ;  that 
is  to  say,  it  cannot  contradict  itself,  nor  be  inconsistent  with  itself, 


572  The  Promises  of  Christ  Fulfilled 

Now,  I  ask  you,  where  is  this  promise  of  unity  fulfilled,  ex. 
cept  in  the  Catholic  Church  ?  There  are  two  hundred  millions 
of  us  scattered  all  the  world  over.  There  are  Catholics  in  every 
land,  speaking  every  tongue  under  heaven.  Take  any  one  in- 
structed Catholic,  I  don't  care  of  what  nation ;  I  don't  care  in 
what  clime  you  find  him ;  take  that  one  instructed  Catholic, 
question  him  as  to  his  faith,  and  in  that  man  you  will  find  the 
faith  of  the  two  hundred  millions  that  are  scattered  over  the 
world.  In  the  word  of  that  one  man  you  find  a  unit,  the  rep- 
resentation of  the  belief  that  rests  in  the  mind  of  every  Cath- 
olic throughout  the  world,  just  as  it  is  spoken  by  the  lips  of 
every  other  one.  I  ask  you  to  compare  this  with  the  miserable 
multitude  of  opinions  on  the  most  important  subjects  that  is 
found  outside  the  Church.  Take  anyone  form  or  denomination 
of  religion — take  Protestantism,  or  any  other  form  of  religious 
belief  outside  of  the  Catholic  Church  ;  have  they  any  assurance, 
or  are  they  able  to  give  you  any  assurance,  that  their  doctrines 
of  to-day  will  be  the  doctrines  of  next  year?  No.  And  the 
proof  lies  here — that  the  doctrines  of  this  year  were  not  the 
doctrines  of  twenty  years  ago.  Twenty  years  ago,  for  instance, 
every  Episcopalian  Protestant  in  the  world  believed  in  the 
necessity  of  baptism,  and  in  baptismal  regeneration.  Ten  years 
ago,  the  Protestant  Church  in  England  declared  that  baptismal 
regeneration  formed  no  part  whatever  of  the  doctrines  of  the 
Church  of  England.  Twenty  years  ago  every  Protestant  in  the 
world  believed  that  the  matrimonial  bond  was  indissoluble  ; 
and  they  bowed  down  so  far  to  the  Word  of  Christ  that  they 
took  their  idea  of  marriage  from  His  Word,  which  said:  Those 
that  God  has  joined  together,  let  no  man  attempt  to  divide. 
To-day,  Protestants,  all  the  world  over,  believe  in  the  validity 
and  the  lawfulness  of  divorce  under  certain  circumstances. 
What  is  this  but  changing?  Nay,  more;  no  sooner  was  the 
standard  of  schism  raised,  three  hundred  years  ago,  in  the 
Church,  than  every  single  leader  of  the  Protestant  movement 
broke  off  from  his  fellow-man,  and  established  a  religious  sect 
for  himself.  Names  that  were  never  before  heard :  "  Zuin- 
glians,"  "  Lutherans,"  "  Calvinists,"  "  Antinomians,"  "Anabap- 
tists " — and  so  on,  until,  in  our  own  day,  the  last,  and  the  ulti- 
mate, and  the  logical  residue  of  Protestantism  has  subsided  into 
a  form  of   religion  which    is  pure  deism;    acknowledges  that 


Only  in  the  Catholic  Church,  573 

there  is  a  God ;  stops  there  ;  and  asserts  that  there  is  no  other 
dogma.  Nay,  a  Protestant  bishop  of  England,  a  few  years  ago, 
made  use  of  these  words  :  "  It  is  the  proudest  boast  of  our 
Church  of  England  that  she  has  no  dogma  ;  "  that  is  to  say, 
no  fixed  form  of  opinion.  Neither  in  my  spoken  words  nor 
even  in  my  thoughts,  would  I  use  an  expression  painful  and 
disrespectful  to  any  man  ;  but  I  ask  you,  my  friends,  are 
not  these  the  facts  ?  Are  they  not  there  before  your 
eyes?  In  the  Catholic  Church,  any  one  instructed  Catholic 
who  knows  his  religion  represents  the  doctrine  of  the 
Church.  You  never  hear  of  those  in  the  Catholic  Church 
contradicting  each  other  in  matters  of  doctrine,  of  dogma, 
or  belief.  You  never  hear  of  strange  or  novel  proposi- 
tions propounded  from  a  Catholic  pulpit.  You  may  search 
the  history  of  eighteen  hundred  and  seventy-two  years, 
and  you  will  find  the  Catholic  Church  always  preaching,  always 
speaking,  clearly,  emphatically,  fearlessly  on  every  question ; 
never  refusing  to  give  an  answer  when  she  is  called  upon,  on 
any  question  of  faith  or  morals.  After  eighteen  hundred  and 
seventy-two  years,  the  student  of  history  turns  over  page  after 
page  of  historic  record,  to  all  the  enunciations  of  the  Church, 
in  her  bishops,  in  her  popes,  in  her  councils  ;  and  nowhere  can 
he  find  a  single  instance,  of  a  single  line,  in  which  the  Church 
taught  a  single  contradiction  to  herself,  in  which  the  Church 
ever  denied  one  tittle  or  iota  of  her  previous  doctrine,  or  ever 
changed  one  single  feature  of  her  divine  teaching.  We,  there- 
fore, are  forced  to  believe,  that  if  consistency  be  a  proof  of 
truth,  if  unity  be  the  soul  of  truth — the  sign  of  truth  wherever 
it  is  found — that  that  consistency  and  that  unity  are  to  be  found 
in  the  Catholic  Church. 

And  I  wish  to  invite  your  attention,  not  so  much  to  past 
times,  nor  to  other  lands — for  I  am  speaking  now  to  intelligent 
men — but  in  coming  to  this  new  country,  I  have  found,  not 
only  among  my  own  countrymen,  but  I  have  found  in  every 
grade  of  society,  and  in  every  religious  denomination  that  I 
have  met  with,  I  have  found  a  bright,  sharp,  shrewd,  and  high 
order  of  intellectuality,  and  of  intelligence.  To  that  intelligence 
of  America  I  appeal.  I  ask  you,  my  friends,  if  we  Catholics 
were  to  withdraw  from  among  you,  if  every  Catholic  in  America 
were  to  leave  the    land  to-morrow,  and  leave   you  to    your- 


574  I'^t^  Promises  of  Christ  Fulfilled 

selves — would   not   the   idea,  the  very   idea  of  religious  belief 
have  departed  from  among  you  ?     Try  to  realize  to  yourselves 
what  it  would  be  if  we  were  to-morrow  to  go  out  from  the  land, 
and   not   leave  a  single   Roman  Catholic  in  America  ?     Would 
there  be  a  man  left  in  the   land  that  could  proclaim   his  faith, 
and   point  to  a  society  of  his  fellow-men  who   hold  that  same 
faith   in  every  detail   of  doctrine  which   he  holds  ?     Not   one. 
There  is  no  unity  of  thought,  much  less  intellectual  obedience, 
outside  the  Catholic  Church,     But  when  we  enter  her  glorious 
halls  and  cross  her  golden  thresholds,  oh  !  how  magnificent  is 
the  picture   of  unity  that   rises   before   the  eyes   of  our  souls. 
There  do  we  see  two  hundred  millions  of  men,  rich  and  poor, 
gentle  and    simple,  intellectual  and    uneducated,   highest    and 
lowest  ;  and  forth  from  these  two  hundred  millions  of  lips  and 
hearts  comes  one  and  the  self-same  note — the  voice  of  faith  and 
the  praise  of  God.     One  sacrifice   in  every  land  ;  one  word  in 
every  country;    one    testimony   to    the   same   faith;    and    this 
brought  down  to  us  without  the  slightest  contradiction  for  near- 
ly two  thousand  years — since  the  day  that  Christ  arose  from 
the  dead.     Oh  !  how  magnificent   is  the  image — how  splendid 
the  picture  of  unity  that  I  contemplate,  when,  passing  from  the 
millions,  I  enter  the  sanctuary  of  the  holy  ones  in  the  order  of 
the  hierarchy,  the  fittest,  the   brightest  representation  of  the 
harmony  of  heaven  !     There  the  monk  and  the  nun,  consecrated, 
fill  their  own  station   and   their  own  office.     There  we  ascend 
from  monk  and  nun,  and  we  find  the  robed   priest  on  the  altar, 
and  the  preacher  in  the  pulpit.     Above  them  again,  higher  in 
jurisdiction,  in  authority,  approaching  to  the  supreme  head,  we 
find  the  bishops  of  the  Church  of  God  assembled  in  council,  and 
eight  hundred  mitred  heads  taking  thought,  and  expressing  and 
testifying   to   the   Church's    faith.      Higher    still,  we    come  to 
another  order  representing  the  clergy  of  Rome — of  the  city  of 
Rome — the  most  ancient   in  the  world,  and  the  most  honored  ; 
seventy-three    cardinals   around    the    papal    throne — men  who 
have  received  from  the  Church  of  God  the  extraordinary  power 
to  lay  their  hands  on   the  anointed,  and  to  designate  the  suc- 
cessor   of    Peter.      Highest  of  all,  seated  upon   his   pontifical 
throne,  is  the  representative,  the  viceroy  of  God,  holding  the 
keys  in  one  hand,  holding  the  rod    of  jurisdiction  in  the  other, 
and  with  one  arm  governing  the  whole  flock  of  the  Catholic 


Only  in  the  Catholic  Church.  575 

Church  according  to  the  word :  "  There  shall  be  one  fold  and 
one  shepherd."  Above  him — for  we  must  yet  lift  up  our  eyes 
from  earth,  for  he  is  but  a  mere  man — above  him,  but  near  him, 
standing  close  to  him,  upholding  him,  confirming  him  in  faith, 
crowning  him  with  the  supremacy  of  the  Church,  the  great  In- 
visible Head  whom  the  eye  of  faith  alone  can  behold  in  Peter 
and  in  Peter's  successor — the  Lord  Jesus  Christ — the  true 
Head — the  one  great  Fountain,  Pastor,  and  Ruler  of  the  great 
Catholic  Church.  How  great  is  that  design,  how  grand  is  that 
order,  how  beautiful  that  harmony,  how  splendid  that  gradation 
from  rank  to  rank,  from  order  to  order,  from  dignity  to  dignity, 
until  all  are  concentrated  upon  one  man  on  earth — because 
that  one  man  represents  the  Invisible  Head,  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ.  Behold  unity  !  Behold  the  reflection  of  the  divinity 
of  God  in  its  ineffable  unity,  shining  forth  in  the  beauty  and  in 
the  harmony  of  our  holy  Church  and  our  holy  religion! 

The  next  promise  of  Christ  was  His  own  abiding  presence 
with  this  Church.  For  this  He  prayed  :  "  Father,  let  them  be 
one — even  as  Thou  and  I  are  one."  So,  also,  did  He  say  :  "  I 
am  with  you  all  days  :  until  the  consummation  of  the  world." 
Take  heed.  He  says;  although  I  leave  you,  it  will  be  only 
for  a  little  time.  A  little  time  and  you  shall  not  see  Me  ;  but 
after  a  little  time  you  shall  see  Me  again ;  for  I  will  not  leave 
you  orphans;  but  I  will  come  to  you,  and  I  will  remain  with 
you,  and  abide  with  you  all  days  until  the  consummation  of  the 
world!  What  did  He  mean?  The  man  who  is  outside  the 
Church,  and  who  denies  His  glorious,  sacramental,  and  real 
presence  on  our  altar — that  man  says:  **  He  only  meant  that  He 
would  remain  on  earth  by  the  union  of  grace  in  every  holy  soul ; 
that  He  would  remain  upon  the  earth  with  His  elect,  guiding 
them,  preserving  them  from  evil ;  " — and  so  on.  But  I  ask  you, 
can  this  be  the  meaning  of  the  word  of  Christ,  when  He  said  : 
"I  am  with  you  !  "  Was  He  not  always  with  His  elect  from 
the  beginning?  Every  man  that  loves  the  Lord — that  loves 
God — has  God  ;  for  God  is  love.  And  from  the  beginning — 
from  the  day  that  Adam  repented  of  his  sin — all  through  the 
four  thousand  years  before  the  coming  of  our  Lord — every- 
body knew  that  he  who  loved  God  was  united  to  God  by  that 
charity,  so  far;  and  if  He  meant  nothing  more  than  this — than 
His  presence  by  divine  grace — than  His  abiding  presence  with 


57^  The  Promises  of  Christ  Fulfilled 

His  elect — there  was  no  necessity  under  heaven  for  Him  to  say 
the  words  :  "  I  am  with  you  all  days,  until  the  consummation 
of  the  world."  It  was  well  understood  that  He  was  with  them. 
He,  Himself,  had  said,  elsewhere  :  "  If  any  man  love  Me,  the 
Father  will  come  to  him,  and  I  will  come  to  him  ;  and  we  will 
take  up  our  dwelling  with  him."  Where,  then,  was  the  neces- 
sity of  reiterating  the  promise,  and  putting  it  in  such  a  formal 
manner :  "  I  am  with  you  all  days,  even  until  the  consumma- 
tion of  the  world  ?  "  Did  He  confer  anything  by  this  promise 
more  than  was  given  to  the  men  of  the  old  law?  Nothing.  In 
the  Protestant  sense.  He  gave  nothing;  because  He  was  already 
under  that  dispensation  with  those  that  loved  Him.  He  either 
meant  nothing  when  He  said  those  words,  or  He  meant  to  in- 
dicate some  peculiar,  some  special,  some  wonderful  manner  in 
which  He  was  to  be  with  His  Church.  Did  He  indicate,  else- 
where, what  the  manner  of  His  remaining  was  to  be  ?  Yes. 
The  night  before  He  suffered.  He  took  bread  into  His  holy  and 
venerable  hands.  He  said  to  His  apostles  :  "  Take  and  eat  ye 
all  of  this,  for  this  is  My  body."  And  taking  wine.  He  breathed 
upon  it,  and  said  :  "  Drink  ye  all  of  this,  for  this  is  My  blood  of 
the  New  and  Eternal  Testament,  which  shall  be  shed  for  many 
unto  the  remission  of  sins."  Then  to  the  apostles  He  said : 
"  That  which  you  have  seen  Me  do,  do  ye  also  in  commemora- 
tion of  Me."  And  He  gave  them  the  power  of  changing  bread 
and  wine  into  the  very  substance  of  His  body  and  His  blood. 
He  gave  them  the  power  to  substantiate  Him  under  the  appear- 
ance of  bread  and  wine — to  substantiate  God  ;  and  nothing  re- 
mained but  what  was  necessary  to  conceal  the  Redeemer  from 
the  eyes  of  flesh,  in  order  that  man  might  have  the  merit  of 
faith ;  because  "  faith  is  the  argument  of  things  that  appear 
not."  Thus  did  He  remain.  And  if  He  did  not  remain  thus, 
then  I  say  He  meant  nothing — no  privilege — no  special  endow- 
ment to  His  Church — on  the  day  that  He  promised  her  that 
He  would  remain  with  her  forever  unto  the  consummation  of 
the  world.  Where  do  we  find  this  presence?  Only  upon  the 
altars  and  within  the  tabernacles  of  the  Catholic  Church. 

Here  again  I  appeal  to  your  own  sense  and  reason.  A 
stranger  coming  to  your  land — a  stranger  from  some  pagan 
country,  who  never  heard  of  the  special  doctrines  of  Christian- 
ity— goes  through  the  length  and  breadth  of  this  American  land  : 


Only  in  the  Catholic  Church.  577 

he  enters  any  temple  of  religion,  and  he  finds  four  walls,  a 
church,  built  in  a  church's  form,  but  he  sees  no  sign  of  life ! 
There  are  no  adorers  there,  bowing  down  to  indicate  by  their 
adoration  the  presence  of  God.  There  are  no  lights  burning 
on  the  altar;  there  is  no  altar;  no  place  of  sacrifice! 
There  is  no  presence  there  to  speak  a  word  to  him  of  God.  He 
may  see,  perhaps,  verses  of  Scripture  written  round  on  the  walls. 
He  may  see,  perhaps,  the  Ten  Commandments  lifted  up  over  a 
table.  They  may  indicate  to  him  the  word  of  God ;  but  the 
presence  of  God  he  sees  no  sign  whatever  to  show.  No  life  is 
there  ;  no  living  thing  is  there  !  He  enters  a  Catholic  Church 
in  any  one  of  our  cities.  The  moment  he  crosses  the  threshold, 
the  twinkling  of  the  lighted  lamp,  before  the  altar,  catches 
his  eye.  There  at  least  is  some  idea  of  sacrifice.  Some- 
thing is  being  actually  consumed  or  offered  to  some  un- 
seen power.  Who  is  that  power?  Who  is  it  to  whom  that 
altar  has  been  built  up  ?  Who  is  it  for  whom  that  place  of  res- 
idence has  been  prepared?  Who  is  it  ?  He  turns  and  he  sees 
some  poor  old  woman,  some  aged  man,  or  perhaps  some  Catho^ 
lie  youth,  bowed  down  to  the  earth,  making  visible  and  sensible: 
signs,  such  as  men  make  to  God,  and  to  Him  alone — as,  kneelr 
ing  in  adoration,  prostrating  themselves,  and  sinking  into 
the  nothingness  of  their  own  being  before  the  mighty  Being; 
whom  they  worship.  And  the  thought  must  be  forced  upont 
that  stranger's  mind :  "  Here,  at  least,  I  have  evidence  of  the 
presence  of  a  God — a  people's  God."  If,  then,  that  presence 
be  among  the  promises  that  Christ  made  to  His  Church,  even, 
to  the  pagan  and  the  stranger,  the  fulfillment  of  this  promise  is. 
demonstrated  only  in  the  Holy  Catholic  Church. 

Here,  again,  as  I  admire  the  unity  of  her  faith,  the  unity  of 
her  worship,  the  unity  of  her  praise,  the  unity  of  her  sacramen- 
tal and  liturgical  language — here  again  do  I  see,  rising  before 
me,  when  I  enter  into  thy  walls,  O  Church  of  God,  the  magnifi- 
cent presence  of  Jesus  Christ!  Oh,  what  an  argument  of  divine 
love  for  man  that  God  should  remain  among  His  creatures 
forever !  Oh,  what  an  argument  for  the  dignity,  the  value, 
the  grandeur  of  our  human  nature,  that  the  eternal, 
infinite  God  should  make  His  daily  dwelling-place  in  the 
midst  of  mankind !  Oh,  how  wonderful  the  fulfillment  here 
of   all    those    ancient    prophecies   in   which    the   Lord    said: 

37 


578  The  Promises  of  Christ  Fulfilled 


"  My  delight  and    My  joy  is  to   be  among   the   children   of 
men!" 

The  third  promise  that  Christ  made  to  His  Church  was,  that 
her  voice  should  be  heard  in  every  land,  and  that  she  should 
grow  among  the  people  until  the  ancient  words  of  the  Prophet 
David  should  be  fulfilled  :  "  Unto  every  land,  the  sound  of  their 
voice  has  gone  forth,  and  their  words  are  heard,  even  to  the 
farthest  ends  of  the  earth."  Where  is  this  promise  fulfilled  ? 
He  called  the  twelve,  and  said  to  them  :  "  My  friends,  before 
you  lies  the  whole  world.  It  is  made  up  of  many  nations,  many 
tribes  and  races  of  men.  They  are  all  hostile  to  you.  They 
will  cast  you  forth.  They  will  put  you  to  shame,  and  to  all  igno- 
miny for  My  sake.  They  will  put  you  to  death,  and  consider 
they  have  done  a  good  thing.  Yet,  now,  I  say  unto  you,  go  forth 
among  them,  and  preach,  and  teach  all  nations  of  the  earth." 
Euntes,  docete  omnes  gentes.  Their  mission  was  to  the  whole 
world.  No  longer  was  the  truth  of  the  presence  of  God,  or  the  as- 
sistance of  the  sanctity  or  strength  of  divine  grace,  to  be  confined 
to  one  nation  or  one  people.  No  longer  were  certain  narrow  boun- 
daries to  restrict  the  action  and  the  presence  of  God  among  men. 
No  longer  was  one  nation  or  tongue  permitted  alone  to  possess 
the  truth  !  No  !  but  forth  were  those  twelve  to  go,  unto  every 
land,  unto  every  nation,  bringing  to  them  the  message  that  He 
gave  to  them  :  "  Go  forth,"  He  said,  "  and  teach  unity  !  "  Be- 
,hold  the  message  of  truth,  "  Go  forth  and  baptize  them  !  "  Be- 
rhold  the  message  of  sacramental  grace  and  sanctity.  And,  lo  ! 
they  went  forth,  and,  multiplied  by  the  spiritual  generation, 
;they  created  their  own  successors  by  the  imposition  of  hands. 
•Grace  was  poured  abroad  from  them  upon  the  people,  in  light 
.and  sanctity,  within  the  sanctuary,  unto  our  brethren  in  power 
.and  jurisdiction.  And  so  the  Church  of  God  spread  herself  into 
^every  land,  and  preached  the  Gospel  to  every  nation.  Where 
is  the  country  that  has  been  able  to  shut  itself  out  from  her  ? 
They  have  built  up,  in  their  hatred  to  the  truth — they  have 
built  up  ramparts  between  them  and  the  Church — ramparts  ce- 
mented in  the  blood  of  martyrs  !  They  have  piled  up  the  dead 
bodies  of  the  slain  to  defend  them  from  the  approach  of  this 
great  and  awful  Church  of  God.  Nowhere,  among  the  nations, 
has  the  Red  Sea  of  martyrs'  blood  been  able  to  withhold,  or  to 
keep  back  the  holy  Jesuit   missionary  from  going  into  every 


Only  in  the  Catholic  Church.  579 

land,  and  proclaiming  the  glory  of  Jesus  Christ.  Where  has  the 
monk,  the  majestic,  the  apostolic  man,  ever  been  frightened,  or 
turned  back,  because  he  saw  the  martyr's  crown  and  the  mar- 
tyr's blood  appear  together  ?  No  ;  but  he  has  followed  in  the 
track  of  every  conqueror  !  No;  but  he  has  launched  into  the 
most  dangerous  and  unknown  seas !  No ;  but  he  was  of 
those  who  were  the  first  companions  of  the  great,  the  mighty 
intellect,  that  saw  in  the  far  West  the  glorious  vision  of  the 
mighty  country  which  he  came  to  discover;  and  among  his  first 
companions  were  the  children  of  St.  Francis  and  St.  Dominic  ! 
Among  the  first  sights  which  the  Indians  of  America  beheld 
was  the  Dominican  habit,  which  you  behold  upon  me  here  to- 
night. The  message  was  preached  upon  this  land.  A  grain  of 
mustard-seed  was  cast  upon  every  soil.  Did  it  increase  ?  Did 
it  multiply?  Yes,  everywhere.  Where  every  other  sect,  where 
every  other  religion  came,  they  came  to  a  stand-still,  and  they 
dwindled  away  into  nothingness.  The  Catholic  Church,  to-day, 
maintains  all  the  vigor,  all  the  strength,  all  the  energy — and 
commands  all  the  strength,  all  the  energy,  all  the  devotion  which 
were  hers  in  the  days  when  the  martyrs  stood  within  the  Coli- 
seum of  Rome,  to  testify  by  their  blood  to  the  faith — just  as  in 
the  days  when  Las  Casas  crossed  the  Atlantic,  and,  while  stand- 
ing before  the  king's  council,  in  Madrid,  pleaded  for  the  cause  ot 
liberty,  the  cause  of  justice,  the  cause  of  freedom  to  the  In- 
dian ! 

This  is  acknowledged  even  by  Protestant  writers  themselves. 
"  It  is  a  singular  fact,"  says  the  great  historian,  Macaulay, 
"  that  for  the  last  three  hundred  years — since  the  day  when  the 
nations  first  separated  from  the  Church  of  God — the  Protestant 
religion  has  never  made  one  step  in  advance  ;  has  never  gained 
a  convert ;  has  never  converted  a  province  nor  a  people.  They 
are  to-day,"  he  says,  "just  as  they  were  the  day  before  Luther 
died."  Now,  I  will  add — and,  pardon  me,  if  I  shall  endeavor 
to  prove  it  to  you — it  has  gone  back!  The  Protestant  Arch- 
bishop of  Westminster,  whom  I  once  knew  as  a  distinguished 
clergyman  of  the  Church  of  England,  remarked,  some  time  ago  : 
"  It  is  a  singular  fact,  that  the  only  progress — if  you  will — that 
Protestantism  has  made  since  the  day  of  its  establishment,  con- 
sists in  lopping  off,  on  every  side,  every  point  of  doctrine." 
For  instance :  Luther  believed  in  the  presence  of  Jesus  Christ 


580  The  Promises  of  Christ  Fulfilled 

in  the  Blessed  Eucharist.  He  never  denied  it,  as  you  know. 
Those  who  came  immediately  after  him,  cut  off,  in  fact,  denied 
it,  virtually.  Their  successors  believed,  if  not  in  the  sacra- 
mental nature,  at  least  in  the  indissoluble  nature  of  matrimony. 
This  they  have  cut  off  in  our  own  day.  So,  too,  with  bap- 
tismal regeneration.  They  have  even  denied,  on  the  other 
side,  in  our  own  times,  the  necessity  of  a  fixed  form  of  belief; 
to-day  that  is  becoming  most  unpopular.  So  that,  in  truth,  the 
Anglican  liturgy  is  so  unpopular,  that  the  Athanasian  Creed 
is  rejected,  because  it  makes  a  fixed,  definite  confession  of  the 
two  great  doctrines  of  Christianity,  namely,  the  doctrine  of  the 
Trinity,  and  of  the  divinity  of  the  Son  of  God.  Men  say  they 
believe ;  but  there  are  places  in  England,  to-day,  where,  if  the 
rector  or  curate  read  the  Athanasian  Creed  from  the  pulpit, 
the  best  part  of  the  congregation  would  stand  up  and  walk 
out.  Whence  comes  this  ?  It  comes  from  this :  that  the 
world  will  not  accept  Protestantism,  unless  it  be  made  to  mean 
latitudinarianism — anything,  or  nothing.  The  world,  then,  that 
refuses  to  accept  Protestantism,  unless  on  condition  of  denying 
everything,  stands  before  the  Catholic  Church  as  it  has  stood 
for  eighteen  hundred  years ;  and  to  that  world  this  great 
Church  of  God  will  not,  because  she  cannot,  yield  or  sacrifice 
one  single  iota  of  her  doctrine — one  single  word  of  that  mes- 
sage of  truth,  which  the  God  of  Truth  has  put  into  her 
hands — into  her  hands,  and  into  her  soul.  One  would  imagine, 
therefore,  that  this  Catholic  Church  of  ours  should  not  be  able 
to  stand  at  all — accused  of  so  many  things  that  are  false — 
accused  of  so  many  things  that  are  true  ;  among  them,  that 
she  is  exclusive;  perfectly  true  !  that  she  has  no  mercy  upon 
any  one  who  ventures  to  disagree  with  her  in  any  article  of 
faith,  but  cuts  him  off,  excises  him,  says  anathema;  "  let  him 
be  cut  off ;  let  him  be  accursed,"  Perfectly  true;  as  true  as 
that  the  discipline  of  the  Catholic  Church  is  accused  of  hav- 
ing an  iron  rule,  moulding  every  intellect  in  one  mould,  in  mat- 
ters pertaining  to  religion.  Perfectly  true.  The  Catholic  Church 
is  accused  of  desiring  to  intermeddle  with  education,  to  draw, 
as  much  as  she  can,  the  education  of  children  into  her  own 
hands,  and  to  muster  the  consciences  of  her  people  into  her 
own  hands.  Perfectly  true  ;  perfectly  true.  It  is  true  ;  there 
is   no  gainsaying  it.     Why  does   the  Catholic  Church  do   this? 


Only  in  the  Catholic  Church.  581 

Because  she  possesses  the  truth  of  Christ.  Instead  of 
paring  down  that  truth,  to  bring  it  to  a  level — as  has  happened 
to  the  English  Church  to-day — she  holds  men  up  to  her  doctrine 
Dy  the  hair  of  the  head,  and  draws  them  up  to  that  divine  truth 
which  she  cannot  change  ;  and  which  you  cannot  change  ;  for 
you  must  admit  it.  The  Catholic  Church  is  charged  with  con- 
triving to  control  education.  It  is  true  ;  because  "  the  child  is 
father  to  the  man  ;  "  and  it  is  her  duty  to  make  her  men,  men  of 
God.  She  begins  with  the  child,  to  make  him  a  child  of  God ; 
and  she  must  begin  in  childhood  ;  if  she  does  not,  she  never  can 
make  him  a  religious  man.  The  Catholic  Church  is  accused  of 
moulding  intellects  and  consciences  into  one  mould,  drawing 
everything,  as  it  were,  into  one  groove.  Yes,  that  one  mould, 
that  one  groove,  is  the  divine  truth  of  Christ.  You  cannot 
fit  into  it  unless  you  are  made  conformable  to  the  Son  of 
God  in  the  possession  of  the  truth,  which  is  one  with  the  posses- 
sion of  grace,  in  admitting  the  restraints  that  are  necessary  to 
sanctify  and  sweeten  your  lives  ;  unless  you  are  made  thus  con- 
formable to  the  image  of  the  Son  of  God,  you  will  not  have  part 
or  fellowship  with  Him,  in  the  glory  of  the  kingdom  of  His 
father. 

Again,  the  Church  is  accused  of  many  things  that  are  false  ; 
she  is  accused,  for  instance,  of  being  the  enemy  of  education  ; 
and,  strange  to  say,  I  have  heard — more  than  once — in  England, 
this  accusation  made  to  myself  against  the  Church.  And  I  have 
heard  the  same  men,  within  five  minutes,  charge  the  Catholic 
Church  with  being  too  grasping  ;  with  having  too  much  to  say 
about  education  ;  talking  too  much  about  it,  making  too  much 
fuss  about  it  ;  and,  within  the  same  five  minutes,  charging  her 
with  being  the  enemy  of  all  education.  The  Catholic  Church  is 
accused  of  favoring  ignorance,  in  order  that  she  may  keep  her 
hold  upon  the  people.  You  know  that  is  false.  The  Catholic 
Church  knows  well  that  her  greatest  enemy  outside  of  her  fold  is 
the  ignorance  of  the  world,  that  refuses  to  look  at  her  ;  that  the 
greatest  difficulty  within  her  fold  is  the  ignorance  of  some  of  her 
children — of  the  uneducated  portion  of  them.  The  greatest  diffi- 
culty without  the  Church  is  not  the  intelligence  of  the  world- 
No  ;  from  the  highly  educated,  from  the  highly  accomplished  Prot- 
estant, the  Catholic  Church  gets  the  generous  tribute  which  his- 
tory bears  to  her.     There  is  not  a  Catholic  writer  that  has  paid, 


582  The  Promises  of  Christ  Fulfilled 

over  and  over,  such  generous  homage  to  the  glory  of  the  Catho- 
lic Church  as  she  has  received  from  the  highest  Protestant 
writers  ;  that  is  to  say,  men  of  the  highest  cultivation,  and  the 
highest  intelligence.  The  opposition  that  she  receives,  the 
hatred  she  encounters,  exists  in  the  enmity,  the  ignorance, 
of  those  who  are  within  her  sanctuary,  within  her  own  pale. 
Her  educated  children,  in  proportion  as  they  are  educated — in 
proportion  as  they  receive  knowledge,  and  rise  to  the  fullness 
of  intellectual  excellence — in  the  same  proportion  does  the 
Church  lean  upon  them,  appeal  to  them,  take  a  firm  hold  of 
them ;  in  precisely  the  same  proportion  are  they  the  grand  de- 
fenders and  missionaries  of  their  holy  mother.  And  the  highly 
educated  Catholic  is  always  the  best  Catholic.  The  more  he 
knows,  the  more  will  he  prize  and  love  that  Church  in  which  he 
lives.  The  more  he  knows,  the  more  is  he  fitted  to  enter  into 
the  field  of  intellectual  strife,  and  to  do  battle  for  the  faith  of 
the  holy  Catholic  Church,  in  which  he  lives. 

The  Catholic  Church  is  accused  of  being  the  enemy  of  prog- 
ress. Now,  I  would  like  to  know  what  this  means.  I  believe 
that  many  men,  in  this  day  of  ours,  speak  of  progress,  and  they 
actually  do  not  know  what  it  means.  Does  it  mean  railroads? 
Well,  certainly,  yes  ;  railroads  are  a  sort  of  progress.  Thirty 
or  forty  miles  an  hour  is  certainly  a  more  rapid  form  of  advance 
than  travelling  along  at  the  rate  of  seven  or  eight.  Does  prog- 
ress mean  electric  telegraphs  ?  Cotton  mills  }  Steamships  ? 
Why,  what  has  the  Catholic  Church  to  say  to  these  things?  I 
hear  men  talking  of  the  Catholic  Church  as  the  enemy  of 
progress  ;  and  the  only  thing  these  men  mean  by  progress  is 
the  making  of  a  sewing-machine,  or  something  of  that  kind. 
What  has  the  Catholic  Church  to  say  to  these  things  ?  Why, 
she  is  very  much  obliged  to  the  world  for  them  ;  she  is  very 
much  obliged  to  the  men  who  build  railroads,  make  locomo- 
tives— to  the  men  who  will  build  a  line  of  steamships.  Why, 
these  means  will  bring  her  bishops  to  Rome,  to  take  counsel 
with  the  Pope,  and  will  send  them  home  again.  They  will  take 
advantage  of  the  electric  telegraph.  Why,  these  wires  flashed 
to  the  very  ends  of  the  earth  the  decisions  of  the  Vatican 
Council ;  and  every  man  was  brought  into  communion  with 
that  instantaneity  of  thought  which  is  in  the  unanimity,  and  a 
necessity  of  Catholicity.     So    that    to    say  that    the   Catholic 


Only  in  the  Catholic  Church,  583 

Church  is  opposed  to  progress,  is  a  lie.  But  there  is  another 
kind  of  progress  ;  and  the  Catholic  Church  is  opposed  to  it. 
God  is  opposed  to  it.  What  is  it  ?  It  is  progress  of  an  intel- 
lectual kind.  It  is  progress  that  involves  that  diabolical  "  Spir- 
itualism " — dealing  with  spirits,  whether  good  or  bad — the 
superstition  that  arises  from  it  ;  and  the  progress  that  results 
in  what  is  called  the  doctrine  of  "  free  love  " — the  progress  that 
unsexes  the  woman  ;  that  sends  her  into  dissecting  rooms,  or 
such  unwomanly  places,  and  there  debauches  her  mind,  while 
she  is  said  to  be  in  the  pursuit  of  knowledge.  The  progress 
that  asserts  that  children  are  to  be  brought  up  from  their  earli- 
est infancy  in  such  independence,  that  they  are  allowed  to  give 
the  lie  to  their  father  or  their  mother ;  the  progress  that  would 
assert  that  politics  is  a  game  that  men  are  to  enter  into  for 
their  own  private  aggrandizement  and  wealth  ;  the  progress 
that  would  assert  that,  in  commercial  intercourse,  a  man  may 
do  a  "  smart  thing,"  although  there  may  be  a  little  tinge  of 
roguery  or  injury  to  a  neighbor  in  it;  the  progress  that  would 
assert  that  every  man  is  free  to  think  as  he  likes  on  every  sub- 
ject— all  this  the  Church  is  opposed  to.  For,  if  the  Church 
were  not  able  to  speak  to  you — to  lay  hold  of  you  with  bit  and 
bridle — bind  fast  the  jaws  of  this  society  in  this  age  of  ours — 
if  the  Church  were  not  in  the  midst  of  you,  with  the  monk  and 
the  nun,  whose  consecration  never  changes,  whose  obligation 
never  changes,  from  age  to  age,  from  the  cradle  to  the  grave — 
where  would  you  be  ?  Where  would  you  be  if  this  strong  con- 
servative power  of  the  Church  of  God  were  not  in  the  midst  of 
you  ?  Society  would,  long  since,  have  been  broken  up — re- 
duced to  its  original  elements  of  chaos,  of  confusion,  and  of 
sin. 

The  fourth  promise  made  to  the  Church  was,  that  she  was  to 
last  forever.  "  I  have  built  My  Church  upon  a  rock,"  He  said; 
"  and  the  gates  of  hell  shall  never  prevail  against  it."  "  I  am 
with  you  until  the  end  of  the  world.  I  will  send  My  Spirit  to 
breathe  upon  you,  to  lead  you  unto  all  truth,  and  abide  with 
you  forever."  Everything  else  may  perish ;  the  Catholic 
Church  must  remain  as  she  was  from  the  beginning,  as  she  is 
now,  and  as  she  shall  be  unto  the  end.  The  Catholic  Church 
must  remain  the  same.  We  Catholics  know  this  ;  it  is  an  in- 
stinct with  us.     We  know  that   the  Catholic  Church  can  never 


584  The  Promises  of  Christ  Fulfilled 

be  in  danger.  We  deplore  the  calamities  of  this  age ;  for 
instance,  when  we  see  the  Pope  persecuted  ;  and  we  grieve  when 
we  see  him  robbed  of  that  which  the  nations  conferred  upon 
him.  We  grieve  when  we  see  poverty,  misery,  or  oppression  ; 
we  grieve  when  we  hear  of  a  persecution  in  China  or  Japan,  and 
that  a  score  of  Jesuits  or  other  missionaries  have  been  slaugh- 
tered or  sent  to  prison.  We  grieve  for  a  thousand  things  like 
these ;  but  who  was  ever  tempted  to  think  that  the  Church  was 
in  danger,  or  that  anything  could  happen  to  her  ?  And  we 
know  that  everything  else  may  perish  ;  but  we  know  that  she 
must  remain ;  we  have  the  evidence  of  it  in  her  history.  She 
may  perish  in  this  nation  or  in  that  ;  but  she  springs  up,  by 
the  inevitable  destiny  of  her  being,  to  new  life  elsewhere.  She 
perished,  many  centuries  ago,  in  the  very  cradle  in  which  she 
was  founded — in  Palestine — in  the  Oriental  countries  ;  but  she 
took  possession  of  Western  Europe.  She  seems,  now,  to  be 
persecuted — even,  perhaps,  unto  perishing — in  some  of  the  most 
ancient  Catholic  nations  of  Europe.  Spain  and  Italy  are  in 
danger.  If  they  fail,  the  loss  will  be  theirs,  not  the  Church's. 
And  by  so  much  as  the  Church  loses  in  one  land  she  gains  in 
another.  And  while  we  behold  the  bishops  persecuted,  the 
priests  driven  out,  the  churches  tottering  into  ruins,  in  the  fair 
cities  of  Italy,  we  behold,  across  the  western  wave — in  this  new 
land  of  America,  Catholicity  springing  up,  side  by  side  with  the 
great  material  development  of  the  mighty  land — Catholicity,  the 
only  power  in  the  land — the  only  religion  in  the  country  that 
keeps  up,  stride  by  stride,  pace  by  pace,  with  the  mighty  mate- 
rial development  of  young  America.  Twenty  years  ago,  there 
was,  in  this  Hudson  County,  but  one  little  Catholic  chapel; 
to-day,  there  are  nineteen  Catholic  churches — of  what  form, 
what  magnificence — look  round  and  see.  What  does  this  mean? 
It  means  that  where  a  nation  is  faithless.  Almighty  God  per- 
mits His  curse  to  fall  upon  that  nation  ;  and  the  curse  of  God 
falls  upon  that  nation  in  the  day  when  she  drives  out  her  Cath- 
olic faith  from  her.  But,  so  sure  as  that  pilgrim  of  God  is 
driven  from  one  society,  so  sure  does  Almighty  God  send  down 
on  another  people  and  another  race  the  grace  to  open  their 
hearts  and  their  arms  to  the  Church,  His  spouse,  that  wanders 
over  the  earth  with  truth  upon  her  lips ;  that  walks  upon  the 
earth,  a  thing  of  supreme  and  celestial  beauty,  destined  to  go 


Only  in  the  Catholic  Church.  585 

forth  and  to  conquer  until  the  end  oi  time.  And  so  must  she 
remain  forever ;  ever  growing  in  the  faith  of  her  children  ;  ever 
growing  in  their  devotion  ;  ever  renewing,  like  the  eagle,  from 
day  to  day,  her  divinely  infused  strength  and  power;  ever  test- 
ing every  system  of  philosophy ;  ever  denouncing  every  form 
of  error;  ever  proclaiming  every  form  of  law  ;  and  laboriously 
and  patiently — the  Alma  Mater — bringing  out,  with  skillful  and 
patient  hand,  in  the  confessional  and  her  altar,  in  all  the  influ- 
ence of  the  sacraments — bringing  out,  in  every  individual  soul 
that  she  touches,  the  divine  and  God-like  image  of  Christ. 

Such  do  we  behold  thee — such  do  I  see  thee,  O  royal 
mother!  O  royal  mother!  even  as  Paul,  at  Tarsus,  beheld 
thee — thee  whom  Christ  loved,  and  for  whom  He  laid  down 
His  life,  that  He  might  present  thee  to  Himself  a  glo- 
rious Church,  not  having  spot  or  wrinkle,  but  holy  and 
perfect  in  thy  sanctity.  Such  do  I  behold  thee,  as  the 
prophet  beheld  thee  when  he  said :  "  Thou  wast  made  of 
exceeding  beauty,  and  thou  wast  made  of  perfect  beauty,  be- 
cause of  thy  beauty  which  I  behold  in  thee,  saith  the  Lord." 
As  such  do  I  recognize  thee,  O  mother,  who  hast  begotten  me 
by  the  simple  act  of  Christ.  As  such  do  I  recognize  thee,  O 
m.ighty  influence,  sanctifying  all  that  thou  dost  approach.  As 
such  do  I  behold  thee,  with  all  the  brightest  intelligences  of 
the  world,  in  times  past  and  in  times  present,  bowing  down 
before  thy  altars,  and  accepting  thy  message  of  divine  truth. 
As  such  do  I  see  thee,  when,  turning  from  the  past,  I  look  into 
the  future,  and  behold  thee,  with  a  crown  of  supreme  and  celes- 
tial beauty,  shining  in  the  unity  of  thy  faith,  and  resplendent  in 
the  glory  of  thy  sanctity  ;  the  crowning  blessing  of  this  glorious 
western  land,  that,  in  these  later  days  of  the  world's  existence, 
will  put  forth  all  her  strength  and  all  her  intelligence  to  uphold 
the  glory  of  Christ  and  of  His  Church. 

One  word  before  I  leave.  I  came  here  this  evening  on  behalf 
of  this  very  cause  ol  which  1  am  speaking  to  you — for  a  Cath- 
olic church  which  is  being  built  in  this  city  by  my  respected 
friend,  Father  Hennessy.  Of  course,  a  priest  alone — when  he 
faces  the  task  of  building  a  church — undertakes  a  tremendous 
obligation  ;  and,  generally  speaking,  gets  himself  up  to  his  eyes 
in  debt.  But  because  of  the  divine  principle  that  underlies 
everything  in  the  Church,  he  knows  that  no  matter  how  gigan- 


586  The  Promises  of  Christy  etc. 

tic  the  undertaking,  he  is  sure  to  succeed  ;  because  the  Church, 
for  which  he  labors,  never  dies — never  fails.  To  whom  does  he 
look  for  support  ?  He  looks  to  His  people  ;  and  he  looks  es- 
pecially to  those  among  his  people  who  have  learned  in  the 
Catholic  Church,  under  the  influence  of  her  graces,  to  uphold 
the  sacred  cause  of  temperance.  He  appeals  to  the  generous- 
hearted  people  who  have  never  been  wanting  in  magnanimity, 
nor  in  truthfulness,  nor  in  talent,  nor  in  tenderness  of  heart — 
Irish  Catholics,  all  the  world  over — whom  the  demon  of  intem- 
perance would  fain  touch  with  his  hell-born  hand,  to  dry  up 
every  highest  and  most  generous  emotion  by  the  breath 
of  his  infernal  lips.  You  have  risen,  oh  !  my  brothers,  out  of 
his  power ;  you  have  shaken  him  off,  and  you  have  declared,  by 
your  association,  that,  in  this  land  of  America,  the  Irishman 
will  be  the  intellectual,  generous,  high-minded,  temperate  man 
of  whom  the  Church  will  be  proud,  and  of  whom  the  State  never 
will  be  ashamed.  You  have  made  yourselves  the  apostles  of 
this  virtue,  which,  next  to  your  faith,  is  the  grandest  of  virtues, 
and  without  which  even  faith  itself  is  of  no  avail.  A  drunkard 
is  rather  a  disgrace  to  the  faith  which  he  professes,  and  a 
stumbling-block  in  the  path  of  those  who  would  fain  uphold 
that  faith.  Believe  me,  therefore,  my  brethren,  for  you  do  I 
come,  and  for  you  I  w^ould  willingly  lay  down  my  life  to 
strengthen  you  in  this  glorious  resolution,  which,  in  this  larger 
Ireland  of  America,  will  build  up  the  glory  of  our  people,  and 
will  bring  them  up  as  an  influence  in  the  land  in  everything 
that  is  highest,  and  most  eminent,  and  most  intellectual.  And 
all  this  united  in  one  word,  when  I  say  the  sober,  temperate 
Irishman.  Persevere,  in  the  name  of  God  ;  persevere,  for  the 
sake  of  home  ;  for  the  loved  ones  thore — for  the  family,  for  the 
nation.  Persevere,  for  the  sake  of  your  own  souls  ;  persevere, 
for  the  sake  of  that  Church  in  which  you  live  and  in  which  you 
believe ;  that,  when  she  puts  the  words  of  her  evidence  on  my 
lips,  she  may  be  able  to  point  to  you  and  say:  "  If  you  want 
to  know  what  sanctity  is  in  the  Catholic  Church — if  you  want  to 
know  what  powerful  influence  is  in  her — behold  her  children  ; 
she  is  not  ashamed  of  them  ;  they  are  the  strongest  argument 
of  the  power  of  her  voice." 


THE  HIDDEN  SAINTS  OF  IRELAND 


[Discourse  preached  in  St.  Raymond's  Church,  Westchester,  N.  Y.,  on  the  evening 
of  the  festival  of  "  All  Saints,"  1872.] 

"  Praise  ye  the  Lord  in  His  saints.     Praise  Him  in  the  firmament  of  His  power." 

HESE  words  are  found  in  the  150th  Psalm,  and  they 
tell  us,  dear  friends,  a  great  and  important  truth  ;  that 
is  to  say,  that  the  Almighty  God  wishes  us  to  praise 
Him  in  His  saints;  that  He  wishes  us  to  reflect  upon 
their  lives,  and  understand  their  character,  and,  as  far  as  we 
can,  to  discover  how  the  power  of  the  Almighty  God  is  reflected 
in  them.  "  Praise  Him  in  the  firmament  of  His  power."  We 
know  that  the  first  duty  of  man  is  to  praise  the  Lord  God  who 
made  him  ;  that  God  made  us  capable  o{ praising  Him,  that  all 
other  creatures  can  only  serve  Him,  according  to  the  limited  re- 
sources of  their  inferior  nature,  living  up  to  that  natural  law 
under  which  they  live,  and  by  which  they  are  governed ;  that 
man  alone,  having  the  highest  power  of  love,  and  freedom  of 
will,  is  capable  of  intelligently  praising  God,  who  is  intellect 
itself; — and,  therefore,  to  man  alone  is  the  precept  given, 
"  Praise  ye  the  Lord."  And  that  praise,  dear  friends,  is  two- 
fold. It  consists,  first  of  all,  in  the  faith  by  which  we  humble 
our  intelligence  to  the  truths  that  God  has  revealed  ;  and  in  the 
word  of  praise,  by  which  we  magnify  the  Lord  our  God,  as  Mary 
did,  when  she  said,  "  My  soul  doth  magnify  the  Lord  ;  and  my 
spirit  rejoiceth  in  God  my  Saviour."  Secondly,  God  expects  us 
to  praise  Him  in  the  action  of  our  lives ; — not  merely,  by  word 
of  mouth,  proclaiming  the  faith  that  is  in  us  ;  but,  according  to 
the  word  of  the  apostle,  who  says  :  **  With  the  heart  we  believe 
unto  justification,  and  with  the  mouth  we  make  confession  unto 
salvation."  Just  as  when  he  says,  "  Out  of  the  fullness  of  the 
heart  the  mouth  speaketh."     This  we  give  to  God,  in  our  daily 


588  The  Hidden  Saints  of  Ireland. 

prayer,  in  our  Sunday  Mass,  and  in  all  the  offices  and  liturgy  of 
the  Church.  It  ascends  as  incense  before  the  eye  of  God  and 
falls  as  music  on  His  ear. 

But  there  is  another  and  far  higher  praise  that  God  demands 
from  us;  and  it  is  the  prayer,  not  of  the  lips,  but  the  prayer  of 
the  life  and  of  the  will ;  the  prayer  of  our  daily  actions,  con- 
forming themselves  to  the  will  of  God — without  which  all  praise 
by  mere  word  of  mouth  is  as  if  it  were  nothing.  Wherefore,  the 
Lord  Himself  said  of  old,  reproaching  the  Jewish  people : 
"  These  people  praise  Me,  indeed,  with  their  lips ;  but  their 
heart  is  far  removed  from  Me,"  This  double  praise  is  meant  in 
the  word  of  Scripture,  "Praise  ye  the  Lord  in  His  saints." 
And  it  involves  a  two-fold  application.  First  of  all,  it  involves 
the  application  of  knowing  something  of  the  saints  of  God. 
For  how  can  we  praise  God  in  His  saints,  unless  we  know 
something  about  these  saints  ?  unless  we  know  something  of 
their  lives,  of  their  spirit,  of  their  action?  the  generation  in  our 
own  minds  of  admiration  for  them  ;  also  the  study  of  their  glo- 
rious and  heroic  lives ;  and  thus  praise  the  author  of  all  grace 
in  the  wonderful  manifestation  of  all  the  graces  which  He  has 
made  in  His  saints.  This  is  the  meaning  of  the  text,  "  Praise 
ye  the  Lord  in  His  saints."  For  the  Almighty  God  means 
more  when  He  says  this  ;  He  commands  us  not  only  to  know 
them,  but  to  study  their  lives,  and  to  have  some  knowledge  of 
them ;  therefore,  to  have  some  reason  for  our  praise ;  that  is, 
to  enter  into  the  character  of  the  saints ;  to  try  to  enter  into 
their  interior  lives,  and  clothe  ourselves  in  their  virtue,  by  try- 
ing to  imitate  them  in  the  purity  and  heroism  of  their  lives,  and 
thus  to  praise  the  Lord  truly  in  His  saints  by  reproducing  these 
saints  in  ourselves. 

This  is  the  meaning  of  the  word  of  the  apostle,  when  he  says, 
"  Brethren,  be  ye  imitators  of  me  as  I  also  am  of  Christ."  We 
ought  to  praise  God  through  His  saints,  first  of  all,  by  our  ad- 
miration of  them.  "  God  is  wonderful  in  His  saints."  Second- 
ly, there  is  the  praise  of  the  Lord,  by  the  imitation  of  the  saints. 
"  Be  ye  imitators  of  me  as  I  also  am  of  Christ,"  says  St.  Paul. 
And  it  is  worthy  of  remark  that,  amongst  the  forms  that  error 
takes  in  opposition  to  the  Church  of  God,  the  very  first  dogma 
of  the  devil,  in  this  our  day,  is — that  there  are  no  saints ; — that 
there  is  no  homage  due  to  them  ; — that  there  is  no  imitation 


The  Hidden  Saints  of  Ireland.  589 

due  to  them : — that  there  is  no  praise  due  to  God  through 
them,  for  them,  or  in  them.  Man — according  to  this  new  dog- 
ma of  error — stands  alone  with  God  ;  and  there  is  no  character, 
no  matter  how  noble,  no  matter  how  God-Hke  or  glorious, 
to  intervene  between  man  and  God.  This  is  the  last  resolution 
of  human  pride ;  this  is  the  very  spirit  of  Protestantism  ;  this  Is 
the  last  climax  of  the  pride  of  human  intelligence,  climbing  up 
to  God,  without  that  ladder  of  sanctity  and  saintly  example 
that  the  Almighty  God  Himself  has  placed  there  between  man 
and  Him.  The  sin  of  the  devil,  I  hold,  was,  that  finding  himself 
under  the  rule  of  the  Most  High  God,  exalted  in  his  spirit,  he 
said  :  "  I  will  climb  up  on  high  ;  I  will  fly  to  the  summit  of  all 
things  ;  I  will  seat  myself  on  the  throne  of  God  ;  and  I  will  be 
like  unto  the  Most  High."  So  the  genius  of  Protestantism 
says,  "  Let  no  Virgin  Mother,  no  apostle  or  martyr,  appear  be- 
fore my  eyes.  I  despise  them  all.  I  alone  stand  upon  the  earth, 
and  am  able  to  lay  hold  upon  God  by  divine  faith,  through  the 
Son  of  God ;  and  I  will  allow  no  saint,  no  intercessor,  to  inter- 
vene between  me,  and  that  God,  to  whom  I  aspire."  That  is 
the  pride  of  the  human  intellect  ;  while  the  Almighty  God,  in 
Scripture,  declares  to  us  that  the  praise  most  acceptable  to 
Him — that  praise  which  fills  His  heart  with  joy — is  the  praise 
that  comes  to  Him  in  the  practical  form  of  sanctity  of  life  ;  the 
praise  that  comes  through  His  saints.  Therefore,  the  Psalmist 
says,  "  Praise  ye  the  Lord  in  His  saints — praise  Him  in  the  firma- 
ment of  His  power." 

My  friends,  have  you  reflected  upon  it  ?  that  it  is  not  without 
a  divine  philosophy  that  the  Almighty  God  has  raised  up 
these  Saints,  whom  we  celebrate  ;  and  has  put  them  before  us. 
We  know  that,  by  the  divine  grace  of  God,  our  vocation  is  to 
become  holy  and  perfect.  "  This  is  the  will  of  God,  that  ye  be 
perfect  even  as  your  Heavenly  Father  is  perfect."  We  know, 
moreover,  that  law  alone,  precept  alone — no  matter  how  holy  it 
be  ;  even  though  it  come  from  the  mind  of  God — is  not  sufficient 
to  make  men  holy  or  perfect.  There  are  other  things  required 
besides  law.  First  of  all  is  required  the  precept  of  the  law,  that 
man  may  know  his  duty.  Secondly,  is  required  the  grace  of  God, 
by  which  man  may  be  enabled  to  perform  that  duty.  And, 
thirdly,  is  required  some  example,  some  form,  some  type,  by  which 
we  may  know  how  we  are  to  perform  that  duty.     God  conde- 


590  The  Hidden  Saints  of  Ireland. 

scended,  in  the  mystery  of  the  Incarnation,  to  our  weakness 
and  to  our  necessities;  and  not  only  sent  down  the  law,  in  the 
person  of  Jesus  Christ — not  only  sent  down  grace  in  the  person 
of  Jesus  Christ,  His  Son  ;  but  he  also  sent,  in  the  Sacred  human- 
ity of  our  Lord,  a  divine  example  by  which  all  men  may  know 
how  they  are  to  become  holy  and  pleasing  to  God.  Wherefore 
the  Saviour  Himself  said:  "  I  have  given  you  an  example,  that 
as  I  have  done,  you  may  also  do."  But  such  is  the  infinite  dis- 
tance that  separates  us,  worms  of  the  earth — men  full  of  weak- 
ness— full  of  passion — full  of  misery  and  yet  full  of  pride — such 
is  the  infinite  separation  that  divides  us  from  our  divine  Lord — 
the  infinite  and  perfect  God,  Jesus  Christ — that  we  might  lose 
heart,  and  say  to  ourselves  "  I  never  could  do  it !  "  Contem- 
plating Him,  we  might  say  to  ourselves:  "  He  was  the  Son  of 
God,  God  Himself,  True  God  of  True  God — How  can  I  imitate 
so  high,  so  heavenly,  so  God-like  an  example?"  "  Oh!  Lord, 
Eternal  Father,"  we  might  exclaim  :  "  Thou  hast  propounded  to 
us  too  difficult  a  task.  Thou  hast  given  us  a  labor  more  than 
man  can  accomplish,  I  cannot  become  like  the  Divine  Son,  who  is 
all-sinless,  all-perfect,  infinite  and  omnipotent  strength  itself. 
God,  willing  to  take  from  out  the  mouth  of  every  man  every 
excuse  for  not  being  holy ;  God,  anxious  that  we  should  all  ren- 
der to  Him  the  praise  of  holiness  of  life  as  well  as  the  praise  of 
word  from  our  lips — raises  up  in  His  Holy  Church,  saints  in 
every  walk  of  life,  and  puts  them  before  us,  that,  through  them, 
imitating  them,  we  may  become  like  to  Jesus  Christ.  Saints, 
that  is  to  say  men — flesh  and  blood  like  ourselves  ;  with  human 
passions,  with  human  weaknesses,  aye  !  with  human  sins  hang- 
ing around  them  ; — in  order  that  every  one  may  know  that  even 
as  they  became  holy,  through  God's  grace,  so  we  may  become 
holy  and  that  the  word  of  excuse  for  sin  may  be  taken  out  of 
the  mouth  of  every  sinner.  That  is  the  reason  why  Almighty 
God  raised  up  saints  in  His  Church.  Thus,  for  instance, a  man 
might  say  to  himself:  "  I  have  fallen  into  sin !  I  have  denied  my 
Saviour,  I  have  crucified  my  Lord — even  this  Lord  of  mine; — 
made  a  mockery  of  Him  by  my  weakness,  by  my  impurity,  by 
my  infidelity.  How  can  I  rise  again?  Christ  never  did  this. 
Christ  is  the  only  emblem,  the  only  sign  and  model  of  holiness 
that  God  has  given  us."  St.  Peter,  chief  of  the  apostles,  comes 
before  us,  and  sayeth :   "  Brother,  fellow-sinner,  friend  :   I  also 


The  Hidden  Saints  of  Ireland.  591 

denied  our  Lord  and  Master,  and  swore  an  oath,  that  I  knew 
Him  not.  I  abandoned  Him  in  the  hour  of  His  weakness,  suf- 
fering and  passion.  Friend,  thou  hast  done  no  worse  than  I. 
But,  behold,  He  glanced  upon  me  with  His  eyes,  and,  under  the 
light  of  those  eyes  of  His,  I  turned  to  Him  with  love  again,  and 
went  out  weeping.  I  made  my  tears  my  bread,  during  many 
years.  I  have  learned  how  to  break  my  heart.  Do  you,  fellow- 
sinner,  as  I  have  done ;  and  thou  shalt  be  as  I  am  to-day  in  the 
Kingdom  of  God." 

Thus,  through  every  range,  every  degree  of  sin  we  find  some 
saint,  the  type  of  the  sinner,  until  we  come  to  that  degree  of 
sin  for  which  the  world  has  no  remedy.  The  woman  who 
ought  to  be  the  highest,  and  consequently,  when  fallen  is  the 
lowest,  because  it  is  written,  "  Corruption  of  that  which  is  the 
most  perfect,  most  pure,  is  always  the  worst  form  of  corrup- 
tion." The  woman  who  ought  to  be  the  type  of  purity,  because 
the  reflection  of  Mary  the  Mother  of  God — the  highest  type  of 
womanhood  on  the  earth  ;  the  woman,  who  ought  to  be  the 
creatress  of  purity  by  the  breath  of  her  lips  ; — she,  fallen  into 
sin,  unlike  any  other  sinner;  in  her,  the  sin  becomes  the  very 
life  of  her  life  ;  the  fallen  woman  is  the  very  embodiment  of  sin. 
The  Scripture  says  of  her:  "  I  have  known  a  woman  more  bit- 
ter than  death,  her  hands,  are  nails  ;  her  heart  is  a  sepulchre ; 
and  her  chamber  is  the  door  into  the  inner  place  of  hell ;  he  who 
is  a  sinner  shall  be  caught  by  her."  The  woman,  for  whom  the 
world  has  no  remedy,  save  to  leave  her  to  her  misfortune ; 
again — the  woman,  whose  sin  is  said,  of  old,  to  be  as  bitter  as 
damnation  ;  the  touch  of  which  is  corruption  and  eternal  death  ; 
— is  there  no  hope  for  such  a  sinner  as  this  ?  Oh  !  my  friends, 
such  a  one  walked  the  streets  of  Jerusalem,  of  old  ;  and  the 
wickedest  sinner  in  it,  turned  aside  with  shame ;  the  veriest  de- 
bauchee— Pharisee  or  Publican — gathered  up  his  robes,  and 
went  over  to  the  other  side  of  the  way,  that  the  living  sin,  the 
contamination  of  hell,  might  pass  without  touching  him.  But, 
in  the  hour  of  divine  power  and  benediction  she  came  to  the 
feet  of  Christ ;  she  heard  that  He  was  in  the  hall  of  the  Pharisee's 
house,  sitting  at  His  meal.  She  entered  ;  and  the  moment  she 
caught  sight  of  His  blessed  face,  she  was  afraid  to  look  at 
Him,  and  she  crept  around  until  she  came  behind  Him — 
creeping  like  a  brute  beast,  on  her  hands  and  knees,  and  then 


592  The  Hidden  Saints  of  Ireland. 

gathering  herself  around  His  feet  like  a  serpent,  she  caught 
them  in  her  hands,  and  the  moment  she  touched  Him,  her  sin- 
ful heart  was  broken  within  her  by  the  burden  of  sin,  and  it 
dissolved  itself  into  tears  !  A  fountain  burst  from  her  eyes. 
With  these  tears  she  washed  His  feet ;  and  with  the  hair  of  her 
beautiful  head  she  wiped  them,  and  broke  on  the  marble  pave- 
ment the  alabaster  box  of  ointment,  and  poured  out  its  contents 
upon  Him.  And  He — the  infinite  God  of  purity — vouchsafed 
to  bend  and  turn  His  eyes  upon  the  woman,  and  said  :  "  Oh  ! 
Mary,  rise,  thou  art  purified  and  made  holy ;  great  is  the  remis- 
sion that  is  given  to  thee,  because  great  is  the  love  that  is  in 
thy  heart."  And  Mary  Magdalen — the  living  sin — who  was  the 
embodiment  of  sin — the  very  incarnation  of  hell — arose  from  the 
feet  of  Jesus  Christ,  as  pure  as  the  highest  angel  that  ministers 
before  the  throne  in  heaven. 

Thus,  do  we  see,  for  the  consolation  of  every  sinner — no 
matter  how  false,  how  vile  he  may  be — the  Almighty  God  has 
raised  up  His  saints  ;  and  they  pass  before  us  in  that  magnifi- 
cent yearly  liturgy  of  the  Church — now  a  martyr ;  now  one  who 
preserved  his  purity  from  early  youth,  and  in  whom  sanctity 
was  a  development  and  not  a  change ;  now  a  holy  monk  or 
confessor  ;  now  a  virgin.  And  they  all  pass  before  us  and  say : 
"  Brothers,  is  there  one  amongst  you  who  has  fallen,  even  as  I 
have  ?"  "  Be  ye  imitators  of  me,  as  I  also  am  of  Christ."  This 
is  the  philosophy  of  the  Church  of  the  Almighty  God,  in  putting 
these  saints  before  you. 

But,  my  friends,  though  we  celebrate  them  day  by  day 
throughout  the  Church,  every  year,  still  the  Holy  Catholic 
Church,  the  great  prolific  mother  of  all  sanctity,  does  not  for 
an  instant,  pretend  that,  in  her  canonized  saints,  she  puts  before 
us  all  those  whose  names  are  written  in  the  Book  of  Life. 
Among  the  hidden  saints,  whose  names  are  not  known,  there 
may  be  those  who  outshine  to-day  even  Augustine  in  all  his 
glory,  and  all  the  highest  saints  whom  we  imagine  to  have  the 
highest  places.  We  do  not  know.  The  Church  selects  some 
of  the  most  heroic,  whose  heroism  was  known  to  her  by  human 
means,  whose  lives  were  public,  whose  characters  attest  that 
every  sanctity  was  abounding.  So,  we  take  an  apostle  one 
day  ;  another  day  a  martyr ;  the  next  day  a  virgin  ;  the  next 
day,  a  number  of  martyrs,  who  suffered  death  in  some  particu- 


The  Hidden  Saints  of  Ireland.  593 

lar  situations.  But  the  Church  of  God  does  not  pretend  to 
confine  her  saints  within  the  circle  of  her  solemn  canonization. 
We  are  aware  that  on  this  day  of  November,  called  "  All  Saints 
Day,"  she  takes  one  day  in  the  year  to  offer  up  gratitude  to 
the  multitude  of  saints  whose  names  are  not  known  to  men, 
but  are  written  in  bright  colors  of  gold  in  the  Book  of  Life. 
Thus  again,  by  this  supplementary  festival  service,  the 
Church  pours  forth  her  praise  to  God,  in  and  through  her 
hidden  saints. 

And  who  are  these  ?  They  exist  in  every  nation  that  has 
embraced  the  cross.  There  is  no  race,  no  people,  that  have 
ever  embraced  the  Gospel,  that  have  not  produced  these  fruits 
of  sanctity.  The  ancient  Asiatic  kingdoms,  even  under  the  old 
law,  produced  them.  We  know  little  about  their  names ;  and 
yet  we  know  of  the  multitudes  that  died  in  the  reign  of  the 
wicked  king,  because  they  refused  to  violate  the  Sabbath;  we 
know  of  the  multitudes  that  died  in  the  persecutions  that  came, 
time  after  time,  sweeping  over  the  Jewish  people  ;  we  know 
that  in  the  first  three  hundred  years  after  the  Church  was  es- 
tablished, to  be  a  Christian  man  was  to  be  a  martyr ;  and  that 
every  nation,  every  province  of  the  earth  that  embraced  Chris- 
tianity, brought  forth  its  martyrs,  not  in  hundreds,  but  in  thou- 
sands and  hundreds  of  thousands.  The  catacombs  of  Rome 
were  filled  with  them ;  the  plains  of  Asia  and  Northern  Africa 
were  covered  with  them  ;  their  hordes  lay  throughout  the  length 
and  breadth  of  Italy  and  Southern  Gaul.  There  they  were 
dead  in  the  Catacombs  of  Rome,  as  I  myself  have  witnessed,  in 
some  of  the  chambers  where  they  found  the  slain  bodies  of  the 
martyrs.  We  know  not  their  names.  There  may  be  men  and 
women,  and  holy  children,  who  shed  their  blood  for  God,  and 
went  up  to  heaven.  God  only  knows  how  many  there  were-; 
how  many  sacrifices  they  endured,  and  how  much  sanctity  they 
possessed.  They  have  come  down  from  the  stream  of  time, 
and  we  find  that  every  nation  that  ever  yet  valued  the  Gospel, 
valued  the  Holy  Catholic  religion — was  obliged  to  suffer  for  it 
in  some  form  or  other.  Even  in  England — though  history  tells 
me  the  Anglo-Saxon  never  took  kindly  to  Catholicity  ;  though 
they  produced  many  good  and  glorious  saints,  yet  their  spirit 
throughout  was  hostile  to  Rome  ;  and  hostility  to  Rome  means 
hostility  to  the  Catholic  Church — even  there,  God  alone  knows 

38 


594  The  Hidden  Saints  of  Ireland. 

the  number  of  saints  of  ancient  Britain,  the  Christian  souls  that 
were  put  to  death  by  the  Saxon  invaders  in  the  various  perse- 
cutions that  came  over  them,  until  that  terrific  persecution  that 
came  in  the  sixteenth  century,  when  England  was  called  upon 
to  become  Protestant.  But,  like  the  dove  that  Noah  sent 
forth  from  the  ark,  which  fluttered  over  the  wild  expanse  of 
water  and  found  no  resting-place  until  it  returned  to  the  place 
from  whence  it  came,  even  so  do  the  men  of  mind,  considering 
the  glories  of  the  Catholic  Church,  in  contemplating  the  fact 
that  there  is  no  resting-place  elsewhere,  return  to  the  ark  of 
life,  to  deliver  the  highest  evidence  of  the  grace  of  God  upon 
this  earth,  revealing  itself  in  every  form  of  Christian  sanc- 
tity. 

All  the  nations  have  an  interest  in  this  festival  day,  be- 
cause of  their  hidden  saints.  My  friends,  I  believe  firmly — upon 
the  evidence  of  history — that,  amongst  the  guardian  angels  of 
ithe  nations,  there  is  not  one  so  honored  in  heaven  to-night  as 
ithe  angel  guardian  of  Ireland ;  that,  amongst  the  apostles  or 
spiritual  fathers  of  the  nations,  there  is  not  one  whose  pastoral 
Btaff  can  point  to  such  an  army  of  saints  as  the  staff  of  Jesus, 
which  Patrick  bore  in  his  day,  can  point  to,  in  that  island. 
There  they  are !  In  their  troops  of  apostles — in  their  troops 
of  holy  virgins — in  their  troops  of  martyrs — there  they  are — the 
pride  of  heaven  to-night,  who  were  the  glory  and  the  strength 
of  the  Church  of  God  upon  earth  in  their  day.  And  it  is  to 
Ireland's  saints  and  to  Ireland's  portion  of  festivity  on  this  day 
of  "  All  Saints,"  that  I  invite  your  attention. 

First  of  all,  consider  that,  according  to  the  most  authentic 
records  of  history,  the  population  of  Ireland  in  the  day  when 
Patrick  came  to  preach  to  her,  was  something  between  four  and 
five  millions  of  people.  It  was  pretty  much  what  it  is  to-day. 
Much  of  the  land  was  covered  by  forest — much  of  it  was  unre- 
claimed ;  but  still  it  was  a  glorious  land  and  people,  with  their 
laws,  their  government,  their  system  of  philosophy,  their  science, 
their  poetry,  and  their  traditional  national  music.  The  coun- 
try was  divided  into  five  provinces,  governed  by  five  kings. 
There  Patrick  came  and  preached  ;  and  the  most  singular 
instance  in  the  history  of  the  world  was  the  conversion  of  Ire- 
land by  this  man.  It  was  not  a  conversion  effected  like  that 
;0f  many  of  the  Germanic  States  by  the  Teutonic  races — through 


The  Hidden  Saints  of  Ireland.  595 

brute  force;  it  was, not  a  conversion  effected  by  armies  of  apos- 
tles thrown  in  upon  them  ;  not  by  the  spiritual  power  of  mar- 
tyrs, willing  to  seal  their  testimony  by  blood.  No  doubt,  he 
who  came  to  evangelize  our  native  land  was  willing  that  they 
should  make  a  martyr  of  him,  if  martyrdom  was  required  ;  but 
Patrick  came  to  li  eland  and  preached  the  faith.  Five  millions 
of  people  lay  like  otje  man  before  him.  The  sunshine  of  grace 
spread  itself  over  the  land  ;  for,  in  one  day,  he  made  the  truth 
so  plain,  that  the  whole  Irish  race  and  people  became  Chris- 
tianized. They  asked  him  not  for  blood  like  other  nations,  but 
they  asked  him  for  argument.  That  argument  he  gave  ;  and 
all  that  highly  philosophical,  intellectual  race  appreciated  his 
argument,  and  bowed  before  his  words.  A  pentecost  of  love 
was  poured  forth  once  more  upon  Ireland  from  the  heart  of  Him 
who  shed  the  sanctifying  influences  of  the  spirit  upon  us  to  such 
an  extent,  that,  on  that  day  of  Pentecost,  Ireland  became  Cath- 
olic like  one  man. 

Not  only  this ;  but  other  nations  arose  slowly,  and  faintly 
opened  their  eyes  ;  gradually  there  fell  upon  them  the  light  of 
the  Gospel,  removing  the  film  and  the  mists  of  Paganism  out  of 
them  ;  but  even  then,  like  men  born  blind,  who  with  dread,  be- 
hold the  full  light  for  the  moment ;  they  but  imperfectly  awoke 
to  the  benefit  and  to  the  participation  of  the  full  light.  Not  so 
with  Ireland ;  the  veil  of  her  Paganism  was  rent  before  the  nations 
by  her  own  hands,  at  the  sound  of  Patrick's  voice ;  just  as  at 
Jerusalem,  of  old,  the  veil  of  the  temple  was  rent  at  the  last  cry 
of  the  Lord  ;  and  Ireland's  Christianity  came  forth  into  the  light 
— into  the  full  blaze  of  Gospel  light.  It  was  not  regretfully  or 
slowly  that  they  came  into  the  fullness  of  Christian  sanctity. 
No  !  but  in  that  day  she  became  Catholic,  the  act  was  as  natural 
as  if  the  grace  amongst  them  had  ripened  from  a  spring  time, 
without  any  intermediate  summer,  into  the  full  autumn  of 
Christian  holiness — producing  at  once  a  national  monasticism, 
a  national  priesthood,  and  a  national  episcopacy. 

So,  my  friends,  we  find  that  our  five  millions,  fifteen  hundred 
years  ago,  became  saints.  And,  as  soon  as  they  became  Christ- 
ianized— throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  the  land — mon- 
asteries and  glorious  colleges  sprung  up  ;  every  hill-side  and 
valley  beheld  its  group  of  seven  churches  clustered  around  some 
hoary  round  tower  of  ages  passed  and  gone.     Every  village  and 


596  The  Hidden  Saints  of  Ireland. 

hamlet   in  the  country  had   its  monastery  of  holy  monks ;  and 
there — not  by  hundreds  but  by  thousands — these  saints  of  Ire- 
land, in  those  early  days  of  Catholicity,  gave  themselves  up  to 
God,  to  prayer,  and  to  the  highest  forms  of  religious  sanctity; 
until  Ireland  became  the  wonder  of  the  world,  and  was   called 
the   Holy  Island  and  the  sanctuary  of  the  earth  ;  The  grand  old 
Mother  of   Saints,  of    Scholars   and    of    Bards.       It   was   the 
"  Island  of  Saints."     Whoever  came  and  landed  upon  the  shores 
of  Ireland,  no  sooner  did   his  feet  touch  the  holy  sod  than  his 
ears  were  greeted  by  the  perennial  praise  that  fell  upon  the  an- 
cient atmosphere  of  Erin.     So,  throughout  a  complete  circle  of 
the  land,  the  praise  of  the  Lord  was  echoed  from  the  lips  of  Irish 
saints  for  three   hundred  years.     Of  their  names  we   have  but 
few.     We  have  the  name  of  Columba,  who  went  forth  and  evan- 
gelized the  whole  of  Scotland  and  the  southern  part  of  England, 
converting  those  rugged  Pagans  to  Catholicity.     We  have  the 
names  of  his  successor,  Finnian,  and  of  many  others  that  carried 
on  his  noble  work.     Irish  monks  penetrated  into  France,  Ger- 
many, Austria,  crossing  the  Alps  into  Northern  Italy,  even  unto 
the  very  gates  of  Rome ;  and  brought  back  to  the  m.other,  from 
which  they  were  derived,  the  fruits  of  their  sanctity  and  Christian 
monastic  holiness.     Glendalough  sent  forth  two  or  three  great 
saints.     It  is  these  hidden  ones  ;  these  men  of  Irish  blood,  of  Irish 
birth,  of  Irish  faith,  hope,  and  love ;   these  grand,  magnificent 
rpen — with    Irish  genius,  intellect,  and  learning — who  pass  si- 
lently from  their  cells  in  the  hill-sides,  from  their  cloister  homes, 
into  the  bosom  of  Jesus  Christ — it   is  these  we  celebrate  on 
this  grand  supplementary  festival  of  the  hidden  saints  of  God, 
whose  names  are  registered  in  heaven  alone. 

So  at  the  end  of  these  three  hundred  years  of  sanctity,  the 
Danes  came  to  Ireland  and  swept  over  the  land.  They  came  in 
their  thousands  and  tens  of  thousands.  Being  Pagan,  their  first 
idea,  their  very  first  thought,  was  to  destroy  the  faith  of  Ireland, 
and  thus  to  ruin  Ireland's  nationality.  Accordingly  the  first  efforts 
of  these  enemies  of  God  were  directed  against  the  monasteries. 
We  know,  as  a  fact,  that  the  very  first  work  to  which  each  Danish 
army  landing  in  Ireland  was  put,  was  the  closing  and  sacking 
of  monasteries,  the  destroying  of  churches,  the  burning  of  con- 
vents, the  driving  out  and  destroying  of  the  monks  and  nuns  ; 
this  was    the    first   thought   of  the    Danish   mind.      And    they 


The  Hidden  Saints  of  Ireland.  597 

came  and  landed  on  various  points  on  our  island.  The  Celts 
maintained  the  cause  of  their  faith  and  of  their  native  land  glo- 
riously— like  men,  and  never  for  three  hundred  years,  was  the 
"  Red  Hand,"  or  the  "  Sunburst  "  of  Ireland  lowered  before  the 
Danish  conqueror ;  never,  for  three  hundred  years  was  he  allowed 
to  ravage,  without  finding  the  strong  hand  of  the  Celt  meeting 
him.  But  nearly  all  the  monasteries  of  Ireland  were  destroyed, 
and  with  them  also  hundreds  and  thousands  of  holy  monks  and 
nuns  of  the  land.  The  land  was  full  of  them.  On  every  side 
monasteries  and  convents  abounded.  When  these  savage  bar- 
barians rushed  in  upon  them,  Ireland's  honor  was  not  destroyed. 
History  does  not  bear  a  single  record  in  which  the  sacred  wo- 
manhood of  Ireland  was  violated.  Ireland's  monastic  sons  and 
patriots  shed  their  blood  for  Christ.  Ireland's  soil  was  purpled, 
from  end  to  end  of  the  land,  with  the  blood  of  the  martyrs. 
Yet  of  those  who  perished  at  the  hand  of  the  Danes  not  a  single 
name  remains  commemorated  in  the  annals  of  the  Church. 
They  were  counted  by  thousands  and  tens  of  thousands;  not 
one  does  the  Church  remember  by  name  on  earth  ;  but  the 
Church  in  heaven  records  them  to-night ;  and  great  will  our  joy 
be  if  we  have  the  happiness  ever  of  beholding  their  faces ;  and 
great  will  our  amazement  be  when  we  come  to  scan  with  eager, 
loving  eyes  the  ranks  of  the  martyred  holy  saints,  to  see  so 
many  there,  hundreds  and  thousands  bearing  upon  their  fore- 
heads the  mark  that  the  barbaric  savages  set  upon  their  Irish 
souls. 

We  move  down  one  step  further  in  our  history.  It  brings  us 
down  some  four  hundred  years.  It  is  true  that  during  the  Dan- 
ish invasion  and  the  wars  that  followed — Ireland's  faith,  though 
invaded,  was  not  distinctly  challenged.  The  Dane  never  put 
forth,  in  the  first  and  highest  day  of  his  power,  the  formal  inten- 
tion to  destroy  the  faith  of  Ireland.  They  came,  to  be  sure,  to 
destroy  that  faith,  when  they  came  to  overrun  the  land  ;  they 
came  to  take  possession  of  the  land ;  but  they  never  avowed 
the  formal  intention — as  history  tells  us — of  destroying  the  faith 
of  the  Irish  people.  In  four  hundred  and  fifty  years  after  the 
Danes  had  passed  away — after  Ireland,  brave,  brave  Ireland  ! — 
gave  so  glorious  a  record  to  the  invaders,  on  that  day  at  Clon- 
tarf — another  class  of  invaders  were  in  the  land.  They  had 
been  in  the  land  for  four  hundred  years ;  they  came  with  a  pre- 


598  The  Hidden  Saints  of  Ireland. 

tense  to  subjugate  Ireland  to  a  nominal  adhesion  to  the  neigh- 
boring island  of  England  ;  they  came  with  a  pretense  of  reform- 
ing the  Irish  Church.  We  had  three  saints  at  its  head.  The 
Irish  Church,  in  its  Synod  at  Kells,  had  already  made  all  the 
rules  and  inculcated  the  authority  that  were  necessary  for  the 
reformation  of  the  Irish  Church.  From  the  days  of  its  first  in- 
vasion, it  had  never  forgotten,  in  its  priesthood,  the  index  virtue 
of  purity.  So  that  when  Henry  II.,  with  his  English  monks 
and  English  priests,  came  over  to  Ireland,  one  of  the  abbots  of 
the  land  stood  up,  in  the  presence  of  Gerald  Barry,  an  English 
priest,  and  called  the  people  of  the  land  about  him,  and  said  to 
them,  "  How  dare  you  come  here  to  reform  the  Irish  clergy, 
with  such  instruments  as  you  have  brought  over  with  you  ; 
never  in  this  land  of  Ireland  were  ever  such  crimes  even  heard 
of,  as  those  our  people  have  been  obliged  to  witness,  since  you 
and  your  accursed  brood  came  amongst  us." 

Well,  in  the  sixteenth  century — after  four  hundred  years  of 
English  invasion — Henry  VIII. — you  have  often  heard  of  him — 
took  it  into  his  head  to  become  a  Protestant,  one  fine  morning. 
He  took  a  dislike  to  his  wife — got  tired  of  her,  because  she  was 
too  good  for  him — ten  thousand  times  too  good  for  him  ;  for 
Catharine  of  Aragon  was  a  saintly,  virtuous,  good  woman. 
Henry  loved  her  for  her  beauty  and  not  for  her  virtue,  or  her 
chastity ;  and  he,  consequently,  resolved  to  put  her  away.  He, 
the  king  of  all  the  land,  resolved  to  do  what  no  man  could  do 
without  a  criminal  action — he  resolved  to  marry  two  wives.  So 
he  took  another  woman,  Anne  Boleyn.  I  would  be  ashamed 
to  read  to  you  the  hints  of  a  historian  of  the  time,  about  Anne 
Boleyn.  I  would  be  ashamed  to  tell  you  the  relation  in  which 
she  stood  to  the  man  who  dared  to  love  her.  It  was  enough  to 
bring  down  upon  England  that  day  the  raging  fire  of  brimstone 
that  fell  upon  Sodom  and  Gomorrah ;  for  remember,  any  chil- 
dren he  had  by  her,  whom  he  resolved  to  marry,  he  became  the 
grandfather  of  those  children.  The  Pope  said,  **  You  cannot  do  it. 
I  will  not  allow  it ;  I  will  not  allow  any  man  in  the  land,  or  in  the 
whole  world  to  violate  the  law  of  God.  If  you  were  the  hum- 
blest man  in  England  I  would  not  allow  it.  You  are  the  King  of 
England,  and  know  it  cannot  be  done.  God  has  placed  me  at 
the  head  of  the  Catholic  Church  to  preserve  His  faith  and  His 
law.     I  tell  you  you  must  not  do  it ;  and  as  long  as  I  live,  and 


The  Hidden  Saints  of  Ireland.  599 

my  successors  after  me,  you  shall  not  have  permission  to  violate 
the  law  of  Christ,  and  scandalize  the  Church  or  the  people.  I 
tell  you,  as  long  as  I  am  Pope  of  Rome,  that  no  woman  in  the 
world  shall  be  injured  by  her  husband  casting  her  aside  with  a 
false  divorce.  I  tell  you  that  God  has  raised  me  up  as  a  sceptre 
in  defense  of  the  weak  and  the  poor;  and,  therefore,  over  your 
wife,  O  King  of  England  !  I  stretch  that  sceptre,  and  tell  you, 
under  pain  of  excommunication  and  eternal  damnation,  I  will 
not  allow  you  to  put  away  the  wife  of  your  bosom,  but  com- 
mand you  to  be  true  in  your  heart  to  her."  Henry  finding  it 
extremely  inconvenient  to  be  a  Catholic;  and  to  be  a  Catholic 
means  listening  to  the  Pope ;  and  to  listen  to  the  Pope  means 
to  be  a  good  Catholic  ; — means  to  be  a  good-living,  pure-minded 
man  ; — when  Henry  found  it  extremely  inconvenient  to  have  a 
Pope  around  him,  he  made  up  his  mind  and  said :  "  I  will  marry 
the  young  lady,  and  become  Pope  myself."  Oh!  my  friends, 
was  not  that  a  beautiful  thing?  The  first  Pope  of  the  Protes- 
tant Church  began  by  having  two  wives ;  and  he  ended  by  cut- 
ting off  the  heads  of  four  ;  so  he  had  six  wives.  The  first  Pope 
of  the  Protestant  Church  was  such  a  blackguard  that  there  was 
not  a  good-looking  woman  in  England  that  was  not  afraid  of 
her  life  that  he  would  cast  his  eyes  upon  her ;  because  if  he 
loved  her  to-day,  he  would  marry  her  to-morrow,  and  have  her 
head  cut  off  the  next  day.  And  this  man,  unfortunately  for  us, 
had  his  army  in  Ireland ;  and  he  claimed  to  be  the  Lord  of  Ire- 
land, to  which  he  had  no  right  under  heaven.  He  sent  word  to 
the  Irish  people,  and  the  message  was  simply  this  :  "  You  may 
keep  your  priests,  your  masses,  your  churches,  your  monks  and 
friars.  I  don't  want  to  disturb  them  ;  I  only  ask  one  thing  of 
you  :  give  up  your  allegiance  to  the  Pope  of  Rome.  I  am  the 
head  of  the  Church.  Acknowledge  me  !  "  When  he  said  this, 
the  answer  he  got  from  Ireland  was  one  prodigious  laugh,  that 
went  from  the  Giant's  Causeway  down  to  Cape  Clear.  The 
people  knew  him  well,  and  said :  "  Does  Harry  the  Eighth  want 
to  be  Pope!  Oh!  "  I  don't  know  if  you  are  acquainted  Avith 
the  Irish  language  ;  but  the  great  word  in  Ireland  that  day  was, 
"  If  he  is  to  be  Pope,  that  won't  do  for  us."  Oh,  my  friends,  they 
had  too  much  sense.  I  don't  care  what  you  may  deny  to  my 
countrymen  ;  but  I  do  hold  that,  impulsive  as  the  Irish  are,  foolish 
in  many  things  and  improvident  as  we  are,  yet  the  Almighty 


6oo  The  Hidden  Saints  of  Ireland, 

God  has  given  us  in  great  things — in  essential  things — a  great 
amount  of  common  sense.  No  man  with  brains  in  his  head 
could  acknowledge  that  the  bloated  villaia  and  beastly  wretch 
that  sat  there  in  his  chair,  like  a  feather-bed,  who  was  too  corpu- 
lent even  to  walk ;  with  his  legs  swollen,  so  that  he  had  to  be 
wheeled  about  by  his  courtiers ;  who  possessed  all  the  fury  of  a 
tiger  ;  who  apparently  had  no  feeling,  except  when  they  brought 
before  him  some  great  goblet  of  wine ;  no  man  would  acknowl- 
edge him  to  be  the  Pope  and  descendant  of  the  apostles. 

Remember,  that  the  Protestantism  of  those  who  speak  the 
English  language  all  depends  upon  Harry  the  Eighth.  The 
French  and  German  Protestants  never  heard  of  him  ;  they  made 
Luther  their  Pope.  But  the  Americans  that  came  from  Eng- 
land, they  acknowledge  that  their  religion  began  with  the  pon- 
tificate of  Harry  the  Eighth. 

Well,  now  began  a  singular  period  in  our  history — the  time  of 
Harry  the  Eighth.  History  tells  us  that  Ireland  had  about 
three  millions  of  people — not  more.  Indeed  it  would  be  hard 
for  us  to  be  more.  For  four  hundred  years  we  had  carried  on 
a  war  for  our  national  existence.  For  four  hundred  years,  Ire- 
land had  been  one  tremendous  battle-field,  and  it  is  no  wonder 
that,  in  this  time,  the  population  was  cut  down  to  three  mil- 
lions. But  still,  three  millions  is  a  great  and  goodly  number, 
if  only  the  three  millions  will  consent  to  stand  by  their  faith. 
The  three  millions  of  Ireland  answered  Henry  VIII.,  and  said: 
"You  may  shed  our  blood  and  put  us  to  death,  but  we  will 
never  separate  from  the  Catholic  Church — from  the  Mother  of 
God — from  Patrick,  our  apostle — and  from  the  faith  which  he 
taught  us." 

Then  the  persecution  began.  Oh,  God  !  Oh,  great  Lord  ! 
Thou  knowest  how  grand  is  the  testimony  that  Ireland  rendered 
to  Thee  !  Thou  knowest,  O  Son  of  God,  who  died  for  us  upon 
the  cross !— Thou  knowest,  O  Supreme  Wisdom,  that  never  in 
this  world  didst  Thou  create  a  people,  or  a  race  that  gave  so 
glorious  a  testimony  of  Thy  truth  and  of  Thy  faith  as  the  Irish ! 
The  persecution  began  with  Henry's  daughter,  Elizabeth;  it  was 
continued  by  her  successors,  James  I.  and  Charles  I.  Cromwell 
repeated  it;  it  was  continued  by  Charles  II.  and  William  of 
Orange — all  these  kings  of  England — the  rulers  in  the  land — had 
only  one  purpose  in  their  policy,  in  their  lives,  and  that  was  to 


The  Hidden  Saints  of  Ireland.  60 1 

shed  the  blood  of  Ireland  until  the  last  Catholic  drop  that  was  in 
the  land  flowed  into  the  soil.  Did  they  carry  it  out?  Oh,  my 
friends,  did  they  carry  it  out?  In  1648,  the  Confederation  of  Kil- 
kenny was  established.  In  1649,  Oliver  Cromwell  came  to  Ire- 
land. What  do  you  think  was  the  number  of  Irishmen  who  shed 
their  blood  under  him  ?  The  lowest  estimate  gives  it  as  six  hun- 
dred and  fifty-six  thousand  ;  and  there  are  others  who  say  it  went 
up  to  a  million  !  Certain  it  is,  he  cut  down  the  population  from 
over  two  millions  to  a  little  more  than  half  a  million  of  men.  Cer- 
tain it  is,  that,  in  the  year  in  which  Cromwell  arrived  in  Ireland, 
there  were  six  hundred  Dominican  friars  and  priests  wearing 
the  habit ;  and  that  in  eight  short  years,  four  hundred  and  fifty 
of  the  six  hundred  were  slain,  and  nearly  all  the  rest  were  sent 
as  slaves  to  Barbadoes,  where  they  died  under  the  lash  of  the 
slave-driver. 

All  these  are  gone.     Scarcely  a  vestige  of  the  history  remains 
of  those  who  perished  under  the  sword  of  the  enemy  of  God 
and  the  Church  of  God.     And  though  the  royal  gates  of  heaven 
opened  to  them,  yet  their  names  are  not  known  upon  earth. 
But  the  Church  of  God  celebrates  to-day  their   memory  among 
the  hidden   saints.     You  can   easily  understand,  therefore,  be- 
loved brethren,  how  deep  an  interest  we  sons  of  Ireland  should 
feel  in  the  festival  of  All  Saints.     It  is  the  feast  of  all  the 
nations  upon  the  earth,  celebrating  their  hidden  saints.     But  in 
truth,  we  may  say,  it  is  the  universal  feast  of  the   Irish  saints. 
We  have  not  had  any  Irish  saint  canonized  by  the  Church  since 
St.  Laurence  O'Toole — and  that  was  more  than  six  hundred 
years  ago  ;  aye,  drawing  up  to  seven  hundred  years  ago.     With 
him   Rome  canonized  the  last  light  of  Irish  freedom ;  on  his 
head  Rome  placed  her  hand,   and   canonized   the    last   grand 
Christian  man,  who,  with  his  love  for  God,  mingled  so  high  a 
love  for  his  native  land,  that — when  that  land  lost  her  freedom 
and  submitted  to  her  invader,  the    heart  of   the   saint  broke 
within  him,  and  leaving  the  land  that  he  loved — leaving  the 
land  that  was  enslaved,  he  passed  over  to  France,  and   there 
laid  down  and  died.     But  since  his  day,  nearly  seven  hundred 
years  ago,   not  an   Irishman   has   been  canonized.      And  yet, 
during  these  seven  hundred  years,  I  will  venture  to  say,  that 
Ireland  alone  has  sent  more  martyred  saints  to  heaven  than  all 
the  rest  of  Christendom.     I   say  it  advisedly  and  deliberately. 


6o2  The  Hidden  Saints  of  Ireland. 

I  say  it  of  a  nation  of  three  millions  of  people  that  kept  up 
their  population  ;  aye  !  swelled  it  up  to  five  or  six  millions 
under  persecution — a  nation  that  brought  forth  her  children 
only  to  become  martyrs  of  God — that  that  nation  has  sent  more 
saints  to  heaven  than  all  the  nations  of  Christendom  put  to- 
gether. 

Come  down  one  step  further.  The  Protestant  axiom  is — 
'  The  age  of  saints — the  age  of  miracles  has  passed."  As  long 
as  that  island  rises  from  out  the  green  bosom  of  that  western 
sea  ;  as  long  as  she  lifts  up  those  venerable  hills  to  heaven  out 
of  the  Atlantic  waves,  so  long,  until  the  end  of  time,  the  age 
of  Catholic  sanctity,  the  age  of  Catholic  miracles  will  not  be 
passed.  Tell  me,  is  the  age  of  miracles  passed  ?  Oh  !  I  have 
lived  in  Ireland.  I  was  old  enough  to  appreciate  the  agony 
that  passed  over  my  mother-land — the  island  that  I  love!  I 
was  but  a  youth  sixteen  years  of  age,  old  enough  to  know  good 
and  evil,  old  enough  to  appreciate  joy  and  sorrow.  I  found 
myself  on  the  western  coast  of  the  island  in  the  midst  of  the 
people,  when  it  pleased  the  Almighty  God  to  send  down  His 
last  and  most  terrific  visitation  upon  all  of  us  ;  when  the  angel 
of  famine  and  death  spread  his  wings,  and  the  baneful  shadow 
passed  over  the  land.  I  have  seen  strong  men  lie  down  in 
the  streets  of  the  city,  and,  with  ashy  lips,  murmur  a  last 
cry  for  food,  and  faint  away  and  die!  I  have  seen  the  dead 
infant  lying  on  the  breast  of  the  dead  mother,  as  she  lay  by 
the  wayside  !  I  have  seen  the  living  infant  trying  to  draw 
from  the  breast  of  the  mother  who  was  dead,  sustenance  for 
its  infant  life !  O  God  !  in  Thy  mercy,  let  me  never  again 
see  such  sights  until  I  die !  What  was  Ireland  then  ?  Was 
she  faithful  or  faithless  to  every  tradition  of  holiness?  Was 
she  still  a  nation  of  martyrs  and  of  saints  ?  Aye,  my  friends. 
One  case  out  of  ten  thousand,  one  case  out  of  a  hundred 
thousand  ;  there  was  a  family  far  away  on  the  western  coast 
of  the  island.  They  were  three  days  without  food.  The 
father  and  mother  were  there,  the  young  man,  tlie  young 
girls  were  there.  There  was  no  work  to  be  done  ;  the  country 
was  a  waste ;  the  angel  of  death  had  swept  his  hand  over  it  ; 
the  ungrateful  soil  refused  to  give  sustenance  to  its  sons  ;  they 
were  living  upon  the  dock-leaves  and  the  grass  until  they 
were  so  enfeebled  that    they  were  no    longer  able  to    go  out 


The  Hidden  Saints  of  Ireland.  603 

and  seek  them  ;  and  the  whole  family  were  here  and  there, 
stretched  upon  the  floor,  dying  in  the  slow  and  dreadful  agonies 
of  hunger,  when  a  sleek,  Protestant  lady  came  in.  On  her  be- 
nevolent arm  she  had  a  basket ;  and  in  it  she  had  bread  and 
meat.  She  had  waited  for  a  particular  day  ;  and  that  day  hap- 
pened to  be  Good  Friday.  She  came  on  the  morning  of  that 
Good  Friday,  and  looked  around  upon  the  dying,  intermingled 
with  the  dead ;  she  took  out  the  bread  and  the  meat,  and  laid 
them  before  the  dying  ones,  and  said :  "  If  you  wish  to  live, 
eat !  "  With  their  dying  hands  they  pushed  her  away  ;  they 
turned  away  their  eyes  from  that  which  was  the  staff  of  life  ; 
they  said  :  "  On  this  day  Christ  died  for  us ;  and  the  Church 
commands  us  not  to  eat  these  things.  It  is  better  to  die  than 
to  offend  our  God."  She  returned ;  the  hydra  put  back  her 
bread  and  her  meat  into  the  basket  and  walked  out  of  the 
house ;  and  God  only  knows  how  many  curses  have  been  upon 
her  head  because  she  made  the  life  of  this  world  the  trial  of  a 
people's  faith. 

Another  example,  and  I  have  done.  A  good  woman,  it  is  re- 
corded, who  lived  on  the  western  shores  of  Ireland,  a  few  miles 
from  my  native  town,  of  Galway,  was  accustomed,  every  Sun- 
day of  her  life,  to  be  present  at  the  Mass,  and  on  the  first  Sun- 
day of  every  month  to  receive  Holy  Communion.  The  famine 
came.  She  was  then  an  old  woman.  Her  sons  had  gone  away 
to  look  for  work  here  and  there,  with  a  promise  that  they  would 
come  to  her  and  keep  her  in  life  if  they  could.  Her  daughters 
had  emigrated  ;  and  she  was  left  alone  in  the  world,  with  her 
youngest,  a  boy  of  twelve  or  fourteen  years  of  age.  They  lived 
together,  the  old  woman  and  the  boy;  and,  when  the  distress 
came  upon  the  country,  to  such  a  degree  that  all  were  dying, 
the  boy  cried  for  food,  and  the  old  woman  had  nothing  to  give 
him.  At  length,  wasting  away  under  her  eyes,  while  she  gave 
him  all  that  she  had,  denying  herself,  one  day  he  laid  his  head 
upon  her  bosom,  and,  uttering  one  dreadful  cry,  he  died.  She 
was  so  weakened  by  hunger,  as  he  fell  dead  at  her  feet,  that  she 
was  not  able  to  go  out  of  the  house  to  the  neighbors  to  get 
them  to  assist  in  burying  him.  For  two  days  he  lay  dead  upon 
the  floor ;  and  she  dying — dying  with  a  broken  heart — dying 
without  one  to  put  a  cup  of  water  to  her  lips — dying  of  hunger 
and  of  thirst — she  laid  for  these  two  days  and  nights,  beside 


6o4  The  Hidden  Saints  of  Ireland. 

the  dead.  On  the  third  morning,  which  was  Sunday,  she  heard 
the  chapel-bell  ringing  for  Mass.  The  country  at  the  time  was 
a  desert — no  neighbors  about  it.  When  she  heard  the  bell,  on 
her  hands  and  feet  she  crawled  out  of  the  house,  and  tried  to 
take  herself  to  the  chapel,  about  a  mile  away.  Three  times  she 
fell  on  the  road.  Those  who  were  nearly  stricken  as  bad  as  she 
was,  as  they  passed,  lifted  her  up,  and  laid  her  against  the 
hedge  and  gave  her  a  drink  of  water  from  the  running  stream. 
She  fell  again  and  again.  At  length  she  crawled — crawled  until 
she  came  to  a  point  on  the  road  where  she  could  see  the  chap- 
el-doors open.  The  priest  was  on  the  altar  saying  the  Mass. 
When  she  caught  sight  of  the  priest  on  the  altar,  she  lifted  up 
her  dying  hands  and  eyes  to  God,  and  cried,  "  Eternal  praise 
to  the  Blessed  Virgin's  Son  !  "  and  fell  back  a  corpse.  And  the 
people  came  out  and  lifted  the  dead  one,  whose  last  Irish  effort 
was  to  crawl  to  the  foot  of  the  altar,  that  God  might  hear  her 
last  dying  prayer. 

Amongst  these  millions  of  people  in  all  this  famine  how  many 
apostates  were  there  ?  How  many  recreants  to  their  faith  in 
order  to  save  their  lives?  I  count  them.  I  challenge  the  world 
to  prove  that  there  were  two  thousand  apostates  among  the 
Catholics  of  Ireland.  The  people  died  like  heroes,  when  they 
might  have  saved  their  lives  by  renouncing  their  faith  ;  the  last 
cruelty  of  Irish  Protestantism  was  to  tempt  the  dying  people  by 
placing  forbidden  meats  before  them.  "  They  were  dying." 
The  English  newspapers  said,  "  As  a  race  they  were  going  with  a 
vengeance."  Yes!  they  went  in  their  thousands  and  hundreds 
of  thousands  "  with  a  vengeance."  Thousands  lay  down  in 
their  martyr  Catholic  graves,  and  their  souls  went  to  God ;  and 
hundreds  of  thousands  turned  their  backs  reluctantly  weeping 
for  the  land  of  their  sires,  and  went  into  foreign  lands  where 
wealth  and  fqjftune  awaited  their  intellect  and  Irish  energy.  And 
into  these  lands  they  brought  the  love  that  sanctified  those  that 
they  left  in  their  graves  behind  them. 

I  have  done.  This  is  our  portion  of  to-day's  festival.  Say  if 
it  is  not  a  great  one?  Oh  !  men  and  women  of  Ireland,  you  are 
amongst  strangers  in  a  strange  land.  You  are  amongst  a  strange 
race.  Remember  what  I  tell  you — speaking  to  Irish  men  and 
Irish  women.  There  is  no  man  of  Irish  name  or  blood  here 
to-night,  there  is  not  a  man  of  Irish  name  or  blood  on  this  wide 


The  Hidden  Saints  of  Ireland.  605 

continent,  from  the  Pacific  to  the  Atlantic,  that  does  not  bear 
in  his  veins  the  blood  of  martyrs  that  was  shed  for  Christ — the 
blood  of  those  who  are  shining  suns  in  heaven  to-night.  You 
have  all  heard  of  Dr.  Doyle  the  celebrated  bishop  of  Kildare. 
It  happened  one  of  the  priests  of  his  Diocese  was  going  out  to 
Rome.  He  came  to  the  bishop  and  said,  "Your  Lordship,  I 
am  going  to  Rome.  Perhaps  you  would  wish  I  would  bring  yoj 
back  some  relics."  The  bishop  said  to  him,  "  I  don't  want  any 
relics  from  Rome  or  any  other  place,  I  stand  upon  Irish  soil, 
and  there  is  not  in  the  land  one  square  inch  of  Irish  soil  that 
has  not,  some  time  or  other,  sucked  in  a  martyr's  blood."  So  I 
say  to  you  that  there  is  not  a  single  family  in  Ireland ;  there  is 
not  one  of  you  whose  ancestors  have  not  produced  before  God, 
in  His  Church  glorious  saints,  patriots,  and  martyrs,  whose 
children  we  are.  Oh!  let  us  live  up  to  every  tradition.  Oh! 
let  us  be  faithful  to  the  fathers  who  went  before  us.  Let  us  not 
forget  their  glory.  Oh !  let  us  not  forget  our  race  and  inter- 
mingle ourselves  with  strangers  unto  the  utter  abolition  and 
destruction  of  that  which  has  ennobled  us  as  Irishmen  ; — of  that 
which  will  ennoble  us  in  all  the  world's  existence,  your  blood 
and  mine  that  we  derived  from  Irish  mothers  and  from  martyr 
ancestors,  and  all  that  it  brings  with  it.  It  flows  through  our 
veins  with  those  blessings  and  those  graces  of  God  by  which  we 
shall  not  be  welcomed  in  this  life,  but  in  death  we  shall  be  able 
to  gain  a  crown  in  heaven  and  claim  kindred  with  the  highest 
saints  shining  around  the  throne  of  God,  and  enter  into  the  cir- 
cle of  their  glory  as  one  of  themselves. 


ON  THE  CONSECRATION   OF  A 

BISHOP. 


[Sermon  preached  at  the  consecration  of  the  Right  Rev.  Thomas  F.  Hendrlcken, 
D.D.,  as  Bishop  of  Providence,  R.  I.,  on  Sunday,  April  28th,  1872,  in  the  Cathedral 
of  SS.  Peter  and  Paul,  Providence.] 

"  You  know  that  how  when  I  preached  the  Gospel  to  you  heretofore,  ye  de- 
spised me  not,  nor  rejected  me,  but  received  me  as  an  angel  of  God,  even  as  Christ 
Jesus." 

HESE  words.  Most  Rev.  Archbishop,  Right  Rev- 
Bishops,  and  dearly  beloved  brethren,  were  spoken  by 
St.  Paul  to  the  Galatians.  They  were  strange  and 
daring  words  for  a  man  to  speak.  *'  You  received  me," 
he  says,  •'  not  only  as  if  I  were  an  angel  sent  unto  you  from  God  ; 
but  you  received  me  as  if  I  were  Jesus  Christ  the  Lord."  Yet 
the  same  apostle  distinctly  says  in  the  same  epistle :  "  Though 
an  angel  from  heaven  preach  a  gospel  to  you  beside  that  which 
we  have  preached,  let  him  be  anathema." 

All  this  St.  Paul  said  of  himself,  because  he  was  an  apostle 
and  a  bishop  in  the  Church  of  God.  To-day,  dearly  beloved 
brethren,  you  are  assembled  before  this  altar  also  to  receive  one 
who  is  sent  unto  you,  and  to  receive  him  not  even  as  an 
angel,  but  as  if  it  were  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  that  rose  up  before 
you  in  all  the  fullness  of  His  power,  in  all  His  infinite  sanctity, 
and  in  that  unity  of  person  by  which  He  was  one  with  the 
Father.  This  which  you  are  called  upon  to  witness  here  to-day 
is  one  of  the  greatest  mysteries  of  the  Church — the  consecration 
of  a  simple  priest  into  the  Episcopacy ;  the  conferring  upon  a  man 
the  fullness  of  that  power  which  he  before,  as  a  priest,  exercised 
over  the  real  and  mystical  body  of  Christ.  In  the  consecration 
of  a  bishop,  as  we  shall  see  most  wonderfully,  most  vividly, 
most  terribly,  if  you  will,  in  the  man  of  faith,  Jesus  Christ  de- 
scends again  and  enters  into  a  man,  consecrating  him  with  the 


On  the  Consecration   of  a  Bishop.  6oy 

highest  sanctity,  enduing  him  with  the  greatest  power,  and 
binding  that  man  to  Him  through  the  Church  and  the  Church's 
head,  with  a  unity  the  most  wonderful  of  anything  that  is  seen 
upon  the  earth. 

Dearly  beloved  brethren,  we  are  all  called  upon  to  be  made 
like  to  our  Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ.  In  this  lies  the  call- 
ing, the  justification,  the  glory  of  every  one  among  us,  for  the 
apostle  says  that  those  whom  He  foreknew,  He  predestinated  to 
be  made  like  unto  the  image  of  His  Son,  and  those  whom  He 
called  He  also  justified,  and  those  whom  He  justified  He  also 
glorified.  But  as  there  are  diversities  of  gifts  in  the  same  spirit, 
so  there  are  many  various  ways  in  which  we  are,  according  to 
our  calling,  to  become  like  to  Jesus  Christ.  In  humility,  in 
purity  of  heart,  in  love  of  God,  in  hatred  of  sin,  we  are  all  called 
upon  to  be  made  like  to  the  Son  of  God.  But  there  are  in 
Christ  higher  and  greater  gifts,  not  necessary  for  all,  but  only 
for  a  few — these  gifts  that  are  in  the  Son  of  God  as  the  founder, 
and  governor,  and  perpetual  head  of  His  Church.  Of  these  all 
men  stand  not  in  need,  but  only  the  few  who  inherit  his  minis- 
try, and  who  are  called  upon  to  fulfill  this  office  in  the  Church 
of  God.  And  now,  when  we  come  to  contemplate  Christ  our 
Lord  in  this  high  and  glorious  function  as  founder  and  ruler  of 
the  Church,  what  do  we  behold  ?  I  answer,  we  behold  three 
especial  gifts — union  with  God,  the  most  wonderful ;  power  un- 
limited, even  to  omnipotence;  and  sanctity  such  as  was  becom- 
ing the  perfect  Son  of  God.  As  founder  and  ruler  of  the  Church, 
it  was  necessary  that  He  should  be  united  v/ith  God  in  the 
ineffable  and  hypostatical  union,  in  which  out  of  three  one  was 
made,  namely,  a  human  body,  a  human  soul,  and  God!  Out 
of  the  union  of  these  three  comes  Jesus  Christ  the  Lord.  That 
ineffable  union  with  God  was  necessary  to  Him  as  founder  of 
the  Church.  Why?  First,  because  no  one  but  God  Himself 
could  found  such  a  Church  as  that  which  Jesus  Christ  founded. 
Secondly,  because  it  was  necessary  to  stamp  upon  the  Church 
herself,  in  unity  of  doctrine,  in  unity  of  obedience,  in  perfect 
unity  of  thought,  of  mind,  of  will,  and  of  heart,  a  resemblance  of 
the  union  that  bound  her  founder,  in  this  sacred  humanity,  per- 
sonally to  Almighty  God.  No  one  but  God  could  found  the 
Catholic  Church ;  for  the  Catholic  Church  is  a  mystery  of  con- 
stant assertion  of  the  same  truth,  ever  ancient,  yet  always  new ; 


6o8  On  the  Consecration  of  a  Bishop. 

derived  from  the  ancient  of  days  in  heaven,  unchanged  through- 
out all  the  changes  of  time  and  thought,  yet  sufficient,  and 
amply  sufficient,  for  all  the  intellectual  and  all  the  spiritual 
wants  of  the  age.  That  Church,  whose  law  never  changes,  be- 
cause truth  is  the  same  throughout  all  ages,  must  be  of  God. 
She  has  never  changed  one  word  of  her  doctrine ;  she  has  never 
denied  what  she  once  taught ;  she  has  never  tolerated,  much  less 
asserted,  an  untruth  ;  in  the  nineteen  hundred  years  of  her  exist- 
ence she  has  never  been  found  wanting  as  an  unfailing  guide ; 
it  can  never  be  said  that  in  such  an  age,  or  such  an  age  she  told 
the  people  a  lie.  That  Church  must  represent  God,  because 
truth  is  of  God.  Side  by  side  with  her,  systems  of  philosophy, 
modes  of  thought,  demonstrations,  or  what  may  appear  to  be 
demonstrations,  of  science,  have  all  been  raised  up,  and  aban- 
doned and  disavowed,  acknowledged  as  false  in  their  principles, 
and  defective  in  their  application,  in  the  course  of  ages.  In  the 
wreck  of  all  systems  of  philosophy,  of  governments,  and  of 
science,  the  Church  alone  rises  up  like  a  rock  in  the  midst  of  the 
tossing,  changeful  waves,  serene,  immovable,  proclaiming  with  a 
living  voice  the  truth  of  God  as  it  was  in  Jesus  Christ. 

Therefore,  He  that  founded  the  Church  must  be  God,  and 
justly  does  He  call  the  kingdom  that  He  was  about  to  establish, 
and  of  which  He  was  to  be  king,  the  principality  of  peace. 
Consequently,  He  was  God,  because  it  was  necessary  that  the 
brand  of  that  by  which  He  was  one  with  the  Father  should  be 
set  upon  the  Church — unity  of  thought,  accepting  the  same  doc- 
trine, clinging  to  the  same  truth,  speaking  in  the  self-same  lan- 
guage ;  unity  of  will,  recognizing  one  central  power,  recognizing 
that  power  diffused  so  as  to  meet  the  wants  of  every  people  and 
every  time,  yet  all  centering  in  one,  Jesus  Christ,  and  bowing 
down  to  the  Church's  spiritual  authority  as  it  bowed  down  to 
God. 

The  second  attribute  that  Christ  possessed  as  founder  of  the 
Church,  and  that  passed  from  Him  to  His  Church,  is  power. 
"  All  power,"  said  Christ,  "  in  Heaven  and  on  earth  is  given  to 
me."  Therefore  Jesus  Christ,  the  Man  God,  was  Omnipotent, 
for  all  power  was  given  unto  Him.  His  actions  were  divine 
and  not  human.  The  action  of  that  which  is  divine  must  be 
omnipotent.  Well  might  the  people  wonder  when  they  saw 
the  dead  springing  from  their  graves  at  the  sound  of  His  voice. 


On  the  Consecration  of  a  Bishop.  609 

Well  might  they  wonder  when  He  preached  to  them,  for  He 
taught  them  as  one  who  had  power,  and  not  as  the  Scribes.  He 
said  to  His  apostles — "The  Father  has  sent  Me  from  heaven, 
and  He  sent  Me  with  all  power ;  as  the  Father  sent  Me,  I  send 
you."  And  He  gave  them  power;  power  for  the  administration 
of  the  spiritual  kingdom ;  power  to  break  the  bonds  of  sin ; 
power  to  raise  the  spiritually  dead  from  the  sepulchre  unto  the 
glory  and  strength  and  liberty  of  the  children  of  God.  That 
power  the  Church  possesses  in  her  priesthood  ;  power  to  call 
down  and  invoke  the  Eternal  from  His  throne  of  glory,  sub- 
stantiating Him  and  making  Him  really  present  upon  the  altar 
under  the  appearances  of  bread  and  wine ;  power  over  the 
mystical  body  of  Christ,  which  is  the  life  of  the  faithful ;  power 
over  the  people,  and  power  to  feed  them  with  the  word  of  doc- 
trine and  with  the  imperishable  bread  of  angels ;  and  power  to 
lift  from  their  souls  the  weight  of  sin  that  the  hand  of  God 
alone  can  remove.  The  third  and  the  crowning  attribute 
of  Christ,  as  founder  and  the  ruler  of  the  Church,  is  sanctity. 
The  fullness  of  the  Divinity  dwells  in  Him  ;  all  that  God  has  of 
perfection  is  in  Jesus  Christ.  He  came  down  from  heaven  so 
holy  that  at  the  very  sight  of  His  holiness  the  Eternal  Father 
forgot  the  sins  and  the  anger  of  four  thousand  years ;  so  holy 
that  the  Heavens  were  rent  and  the  voice  of  the  Father  filled 
the  clouds,  saying,  "  This  is  my  beloved  Son,  in  whom  I  am  well 
pleased  ;"  so  holy  that  one  tear  shed  from  those  sacred  eyes,  one 
aspiration  of  prayer  from  those  benign  lips,  one  drop  of  blood 
from  those  blessed  hands,  was  more  than  sufficient  to  wipe  away 
the  sins  often  thousand  worlds,  because  of  His  infinite  holiness 
and  acceptability  before  the  Eternal  God. 

That  holiness,  even  in  its  perfection,  not  in  any  graduated  or 
lesser  degree,  did  Christ  our  Lord  set  upon  this  Church,  that  it 
might  be  a  sign  of  her,  and  that  she  should  bind  to  her  brows, 
forevermore,  the  very  sanctity  of  Jesus  Christ.  I  prove  this,  first 
of  all,  from  the  inspired  Word.  St.  Paul  declares  that  Christ 
loved  His  Church  as  He  loved  Himself;  that  He  gave  Himself 
for  His  Church  because  He  loved  her,  and  because  He  might 
present  to  His  Father  a  glorious  Church,  perfect  in  her  holi- 
ness. Therefore,  the  word  of  the  prophet  is  fulfilled  in  the 
word  of  the  apostle.  For  the  nineteen  hundred  years  of  the 
existence  of  the  Church,  she  has  never  for  a  single  moment 

39 


6io  On  the  Consecration  of  a  Bishop. 

tolerated  even  the  slightest  sin.  Examine  the  moral  law  which 
she  has  enforced  for  so  many  centuries ;  I  defy  any  man  to  be 
able  to  lay  his  finger  on  any  edict  or  law  of  the  Church  in  which 
there  was  the  slightest  sin  against  God  or  man  ;  I  defy  any  man 
to  be  able  to  point  to  the  time  when  the  Catholic  Church  allowed 
a  sin  to  go  unrebuked. 

Now,  dearly  beloved  brethren,  having  seen  the  three  great  at- 
tributes of  Jesus  Christ,  as  the  founder  and  ruler  of  His  Church — 
namely,  unity,  sanctity,  and  perfection — now  we  see  the  reason 
of  St.  Paul  speaking  these  strange  words  to  the  Galatians : 
"  You  received  me  not  only  as  an  angel  of  God,  but  as  Christ 
Jesus."  It  was  because  he  came  to  them  as  a  bishop  of  the 
Church,  in  the  fullness  of  his  sacerdotal  power  and  privilege ;  in 
the  fullness  of  that  power  and  sanctity  which  the  Church  gives 
to  her  priests,  and  completes  in  her  bishops ;  and  therefore  he 
congratulated  the  Galatians  because  they,  having  true  Catholic 
faith,  recognized  in  him,  their  bishop,  the  attributes  of  Jesus 
Christ,  as  the  founder  and  ruler  of  the  Church.  For  such  is  a 
bishop  in  the  Church  of  God,  embodying  the  three  great  attributes, 
so  far  as  man  can  partake  of  them — the  unity,  the  sanctity,  and 
the  power  of  Jesus  Christ.  The  bishop  is  lifted  up  among  his 
brethren ;  he  is  brought  one  step  nearer  to  the  great  represen- 
tative, Jesus  Christ,  our  Lord  ;  he  is  admitted  to  the  sacred 
counsels  of  the  Church  of  God  :  he  is  loaded  with  responsibility, 
because  of  his  elevation.  The  attributes  of  our  Lord  are  his,  but 
first  of  all  sanctity.  Oh !  my  friends,  I  might  quote  the  words 
of  the  greatest  doctors  of  the  Church  in  speaking  of  the  sanc- 
tity of  the  priesthood.  St.  Augustine  extols  the  order  of  men 
bound  to  virgin  purity ;  and  St.  John  Chrysostom  said  of  the 
priesthood :  "  This  life  is  a  Godlike  life ;  this  profession  is  an 
angelic  profession."  How  can  I  find  words  to  express  the  full 
sanctity  of  that  state  ?  Oh !  great  God,  a  man  speaks  a  few 
words  standing  at  an  altar,  holding  a  piece  of  bread  in  his  hands, 
and  all  heaven  is  in  commotion.  Every  angel  prostrates  him- 
self in  adoration ;  for  the  Almighty  God  rises  on  His  throne, 
and  places  Himself,  by  a  wonderful  Incarnation,  in  the  hands  of 
him  whose  voice  calls  forth  a  response  from  heaven.  How  can 
I  speak  of  the  dignity  and  sanctity  of  that  state  which  brings  a 
man  into  such  awful  contact  with  the  Almighty — to  hold  God 
in  his  hands,  and  speak  to  God  as  a  man  speaks  to  his  friend  ? 


On  the  Consecration  of  a  Bishop.  6i  i 

Such  is  the  brightness  of  the  glory  of  the  priesthood ;  such  was 
the  sight  shown  to  Moses  on  the  mountain,  which  ever  after 
enrayed  his  head  with  glory ;  and  as  Moses  came  from  the 
mountain,  having  seen  God,  so  the  priest  comes  down  from  the 
altar  with  the  awful  sanctity  of  having  seen  Jesus  Christ. 

And  yet  in  us  priests  the  Church  has,  as  it  were,  but  the 
beginning  of  the  priesthood.  It  is  there  in  all  the  integrity  of 
its  power  over  the  mystical  and  real  body  of  the  Lord  ;  but  the 
priesthood  is  not  there  in  the  simple  priest  in  its  full  perfection. 
Why?  Because  nothing  is  perfect  until  it  is  able  to  produce 
something  like  itself.  The  priesthood  in  the  simple  priest 
cannot  generate  a  priesthood.  But  the  Church  comes,  the 
Spouse  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  she  confers  upon  a  man  the  awful 
attribute  of  being  able,  by  the  imposition  of  his  hands  and  the 
breath  of  his  consecration,  to  send  forth  from  him  unto  his 
fellow-man  the  living  Spirit  of  God ;  to  endow  a  man  with 
power  to  consecrate  bread  and  wine  into  the  body  and  blood 
of  Jesus  Christ.  What  sanctity,  therefore,  must  be  upon  those 
lips  that  are  able  not  only  to  speak  the  words  of  the  Spirit  of 
God,  but  to  send  forth  that  Spirit,  in  the  awfulness  of  its  power, 
to  penetrate  the  soul  of  another  man.  Here  are  those  bishops, 
with  the  priests  around  them,  to-day :  here  is  this  man  who 
entered  this  church  this  morning  a  simple  priest.  He  em- 
braced the  archbishop  and  his  fellow-bishops,  and  they  breathe 
upon  him  with  their  breath  the  power  of  Jesus  Christ  and  his 
sanctity ;  and  this  evening,  if  that  man  imposes  his  hands  upon 
a  layman  among  you,  he  makes  that  man  a  priest  of  God,  and 
produces  in  another  that  priesthood  which  is  made  perfect  in 
himself.  He  becomes  a  fountain  of  power  and  sanctity.  Those 
lips  must  be  holy  from  which  the  Spirit  of  God  goes  out ;  those 
hands  must  be  holy  that  are  able  to  convey  Christ  into  the  body 
of  a  fellow-man. 

Behold,  my  brethren,  the  powers  of  the  episcopacy.  Here 
this  bishop  has  the  power  to  breathe  upon  a  man  the  same 
Spirit  which  Christ  gave  to  His  apostles  when  he  said  to  them  : 
"  Whose  sins  ye  shall  forgive  they  are  forgiven :  whose  sins  ye 
shall  retain  they  are  retained  ;  "  and  suddenly  the  priest  who 
kneels  before  him  receives  the  power  to  forgive  sins.  And  it  is 
not  merely  the  power  to  declare  the  sin  forgiven,  but  it  is  the 
power  of  removing  utterly  the  stain  of  sin   from  the  repentant 


6i2  On  the  Consecration  of  a  Bishop. 

sinner.  It  is  not  the  priest  that  does  this ;  he  is  only  the  voice 
—the  word  must  come  from  God ;  just  as  my  voice  speaks  the 
words  of  my  mind,  so  the  priest,  conferring  the  sacraments, 
speaks  the  words  of  Jesus  Christ.  The  principle  of  unity  is 
preserved  in  the  Church  by  that  wonderful  organization  that  is 
the  admiration  of  every  philosopher.  Christ's  divinity  was 
hidden  in  His  humanity;  so  in  the  Church  all  things  stand  in 
Christ.  Christ  was  the  image  of  God  ;  the  Church  is  the  image 
of  Christ.  All  power  and  all  sanctity  come  from  this  one  inef- 
fable head,  speaking,  acting,  governing  through  the  visible  head, 
Christ's  representative,  the  Pope  of  Rome. 

The  bishops  of  the  Church  are  its  interpreters  and  guides ; 
and  the  history  of  the  Church  tells  us  that  whenever  danger 
threatened  the  Church,  the  bishops  have  never  been  wanting  in 
their  duty.  There  is  no  order  in  the  Church  that  has  given  so 
many  martyrs  as  the  episcopal  order.  Their  very  purple  seems 
to  be  a  reminder  of  the  purple  of  martyrdom.  The  very  mar- 
tyr of  our  own  day,  the  Archbishop  of  Paris,  laid  down  his  life, 
proclaiming  that  Jesus  Christ  was  the  only  Lord  and  Saviour. 

When  we  consider,  then,  dearly  beloved  brethren,  what  a 
bishop  is — bearing  jurisdiction  to  his  clergy,  preserving  his  peo- 
ple from  every  error,  and  securing  to  them  and  to  their  children 
eternal  salvation,  I  ask  you  is  it  not  a  source  of  inexpressible 
joy  to  behold  a  new  diocese  instituted  in  this  land  to-day  ? 
There  is  joy  in  heaven  for  this  fountain  of  special  power  which 
is  opened  to  the  dwellers  in  the  House  of  David.  There  is  joy 
in  heaven  for  him  who  is  consecrated  to-day — another  in  the 
line  of  bishops  from  whom  the  sacramental  power  shall  flow  for- 
ever. And  if  there  is  joy  for  one  sinner  who  does  repentance, 
what  joy  must  there  be  to  see  a  fountain  of  grace  opened  up  to 
the  faithful  ? 

That  joy  is  enhanced  for  me,  and  I  know  that  it  is  enhanced 
for  many  of  you,  by  knowing  that  the  chosen  one  is  a  child  of 
our  race.  The  Church  is  not  bound  to  any  race  or  people. 
She  comes  speaking  every  tongue,  under  every  clime  and  every 
government,  only  seeking  to  save  the  souls  of  men  from  hell. 
But  the  highest  glory  of  any  people  has  always  been  the  glory 
of  helping  the  Catholic  Church — the  glory  of  giving  from  out 
the  national  womb  a  priesthood  to  labor  in  and  to  govern  this 
Church.     That  glory,  even  in  the  midst  of  suffering  and  sorrow, 


On  the  Consecration  of  a  Bishop.  613 

has  been  given  to  the  Irish  race.  This  glory,  from  the  first  day 
that  the  light  dawned  on  St.  Patrick  in  the  land  has  been 
spreading  ever  abroad  until  Ireland's  episcopacy  has  been  rec- 
ognized by  the  world.  This  cedar  of  God,  lifting  its  stately 
head  from  the  mountain-top  of  desolation,  puts  forth  to-day 
another  fruitful  branch,  another  ruler  in  the  Church  of  Christ. 
This  tree  of  Ireland's  Christianity  has  not  grown  old  with  years, 
although  its  branches  have  been  cut  off  again  and  again,  and 
its  roots  have  been  watered  by  blood  and  tears.  The  proof  of 
its  youth  and  its  strength  is  that  to-day  it  is  able  to  send  forth 
another  bishop  in  the  Church,  a  long-tried  priest,  full  of  faith 
and  devotion  to  Jesus  Christ ;  to  give  another  among  the  lights 
of  the  world,  the  salt  of  the  earth.  Oh,  no !  our  mother  is  as 
young  to-day  as  ever:  here  is  the  proof.  One  of  her  children 
has  been  found  worthy  of  being  raised  to  the  episcopacy.  The 
Church  of  God,  declaring  him  worthy,  calls  him  to  this  high 
office,  that  he  should  represent  the  perfect  sanctity  of  Jesus 
Christ,  that  he  should  hold  forth  the  Church's  power  unto  the 
brethren  of  the  priesthood,  and  that  he  should  bear  forth  the 
sacred  principles  of  that  unity  which  binds  the  Church  to  her 
head,  and  binds  that  head  to  Jesus  Christ,  and  finds  in  Jesus 
Christ  its  crown. 


i 

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